How To Fall In Love (In Ten Easy Steps)
by KnifeInTheCrayonBox
Summary: Sofia isn't sure how to get Cedric to notice her, so when Amber suggests she try tricks from romance novels—and promises it will get him to fall for her by Valentine's Day—Sofia is all too willing. What starts out as simply falling into his arms and getting him to notice her becomes even more complicated when each cliché trick fails…and Valentine's Day is just six days away!
1. Prologue

_Prologue_

Sofia was not the type of girl to organize grand, elaborate displays of affection. She wasn't easily swept away by romanticism either. She preferred heartfelt words to loud proclamations of love for everyone to hear. Even at eighteen, she was held onto the simplicity she loved as a child. However, she was starting to question that.

Amber was always one for theatrics and grand gestures, and she was the one all the boys liked. Sofia had admirers, to be sure, but Amber had more, and could probably get any man she wanted. That's not to say that Sofia was jealous, because she wasn't, it just made her rethink her subtler approach to things, because the one man she wanted to notice her, didn't. Sofia believed he saw her as little more than the small child he'd helped learn magic ten years ago when she was only eight years old.

As Valentine's Day grew near, she worried more and more about how to show him how she felt. Sofia thought about using one of Amber's approaches, but she didn't want to be too flashy or overly cheesy. And yet, it had to catch his attention, and it had to be perfect, for nothing less would do.

She currently sat on a table that had been pushed against the wall in his workshop—for which he endlessly scolded her, but was the precise reason why she did it—and swung her legs back and forth like a child. She thought for the moment that perhaps the reason why he still saw her as a child was because of such things, and instantly stopped and sat up straighter.

Cedric's workshop hadn't changed much over the years—there were still empty beakers and vials lying all over the place. Books were randomly shoved into empty spaces on shelves and there was a pile of cauldrons stacked against the wall. The place was usually messy, but every once in a while Sofia would come in and clean up, just as an excuse to see Cedric.

Today, however, he was barely paying attention to her antics, concentrating instead on the potion he was brewing. A cauldron rested on a table in the middle of the room, and Cedric stood over it, sprinkling some powder into the bubbling liquid. While her mission in being there was to try and find out the perfect Valentine's Day gift for him, she found teasing him far more entertaining.

"Whatcha doing now, Cee-dric?" she asked, and received just the reaction she had been hoping for when he let out an annoyed huff and frowned. She learned years ago that she had been pronouncing his name wrong, but lately she'd started calling him by it again, just to get a reaction out of him.

"_Cedric_! It's pronounced _Said-Rick_! How many times do I have to tell you?"

She smirked and shook her head. "How do you know?"

He sent her a confused look. "How do I know _what_?"

"That it's pronounced that way?"

He sent her a glare. "Because that's how everyone's been pronouncing it my whole life!"

"Well, maybe they've been pronouncing it wrong all this time and I'm the first one to pronounce it right!" she said, holding in a laugh.

"I—I…" he stuttered, clearly trying to form a reply, but after a couple of moments he furrowed his eyebrows and scowled. "It's _Cedric_!"

Sofia let out a giggle at the fact that he had no good counter argument or comeback. "Nope, it's Cee-dric!"

"_Cedric!_" he snapped, stomping his foot like a child.

"Cee-dric!"

"Cedric!"

"Cee-dric!"

"Cedric!"

"Cedric!" she said quickly.

"Cee-dric!" he replied without thinking, and realized his mistake a second too late.

Sofia laughed, clapping her hands in delight. "I told you!"

He let out a frustrated cry and pointed to the door. "Go away! I have work to do and you're distracting me!"

"I'm sorry. I'll stop now." Sofia knew the joke ended there because she didn't want to be kicked out. She still had to find out what to get Cedric for Valentine's Day. He sent her a glare before returning to his work, but didn't say anything more about her leaving, which she took as a good sign.

After a couple minutes of silence she decided to subtly bring up the subject. "Cedric?"

"What?" he asked, irritation still biting at his voice.

"Have you ever wanted something you thought you could never have?" she asked. If she could get him to reveal one of his deepest desires, maybe she could get it for him. It was worth a shot, anyway.

Sofia could tell by the way his hands stalled in their work that she was on to something. "Yes, once."

"Well…" she prodded. He turned to face her and crossed his arms.

"Well, when I was much younger, I wanted to be a King." She certainly couldn't get him that.

"I think every little boy has dreamed of being a King," she said, and it earned her a smile.

"Yes, of course. However, things have changed. I mean, there are times when I wish I could be a King…but they quickly pass. I don't really want it anymore."

Sofia knew continuing on this subject would be getting off topic, but decided to pursue the questions she had burning in the back of her mind anyway. "What changed your mind?"

"Not what, but whom." Sofia raised an eyebrow, and apparently that's all that was needed for him to continue. He took in a breath before placing both hands on the table in front of him and leaning forward slightly. "I knew that if I tried to…_pursue_ my dream, I would only end up hurting someone very dear to me."

"_Pursue?_ How can you pursue something like that?" Sofia's face still held confusion. "Unless, a person is born into it…or marries into a royal family…" She gave him a gentle smile. "Did you plan on marrying a princess?"

"Nothing like that."

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

His grin faded and was replaced with a serious expression. "There are some things better left in the past, Princess."

She decided to take his word for it…for now. "So is there anything you really want _these days_ that you don't have?"

"Not really," he answered as he resumed work on his potion. He suddenly paused and looked up at her. "Well…I would like for you to leave, I have a lot of work to do."

She grinned. "It looks like you won't be getting that anytime soon."

He let out a sigh. "Valentine's Day is in six days and I still have a list of chores the King gave me."

She pursed her lips, and finally hopped down from the table. "All right. See you later, Cee-dric!" she called out as she walked through the door.

"It's _Cedric_!" she heard him snap before she closed the door. She giggled into her hand before skipping down the tower steps.

Well, back to square one. She still didn't know what to get him, and she only had a few more days to decide. When Sofia reached the ground floor, she caught sight of the double doors leading into the Royal Library. Maybe they had a book on Valentine's Day ideas. It was worth a try, at least. She turned and walked through the doors.

As she strolled through the expansive room she noticed Amber sitting up on the second floor in a chair. She was slouching in her seat with a book in her hands. Sofia climbed the chairs and realized Amber must have been really engrossed in the book, because she didn't notice Sofia at all until she tapped her on the shoulder. Amber jumped slightly and sent Sofia a frown, immediately straightening her posture.

"It's rude to sneak up on people, you know," Amber said, managing to make Sofia feel like she was looking down at her, even though she was sitting.

"I didn't sneak up on you," Sofia said before taking a seat on the couch opposite Amber. "What are you reading?" Amber turned the book so Sofia could see the title. _Pleasure Garden_, it read in fancy, golden letters. "Well, that sounds…pleasurable."

Amber smiled as her gaze returned to the book. "It is. Now can you leave? I'm trying to read."

"Oh, I just came up here to find a book to give me ideas," Sofia said as she stood. Amber suddenly glanced up from her book, her curiosity stirred.

"Ideas for what?"

"Valentine's Day."

Amber waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, I have the maids make my cards, then I sign them all the day before. Saves me loads of time."

"I've already finished all my Valentine's Day cards…except one."

"Whose?"

Sofia immediately felt her cheeks heat up at the thought of him, and dropped her head as a smile stretched across her face. "Someone special."

When she looked back at Amber she saw her eyes light up—probably at the thought of Sofia having a secret crush. She dog-eared a page before closing the book and placing it on the small table in front of her. With one swift movement she side-stepped the table and plopped down on the couch, patting the seat next to her. Sofia took a seat and turned to face Amber. "Who is it?"

"It's a secret," Sofia replied. While she wasn't ashamed of Cedric, she knew that more likely than not, Amber wouldn't understand why on earth she had fallen for the bumbling Royal Sorcerer. Besides, Amber wasn't the best at keeping secrets, and she didn't want the whole castle to know she liked Cedric and have him find out through the grapevine.

"Come on, I can keep a secret. You shouldn't keep things from your older sister. Maybe I can help."

"I won't tell you who it is, but I would appreciate some help."

Amber drew her lips into a fine line, clearly annoyed Sofia wasn't giving in, but still curious. "All right. What do you need help with?"

"The man I like…well, he doesn't really _want _anything. I want to give him something special, but I don't know what." Sofia paused. "I don't think he even knows I like him. I think he still sees me as a little girl. Maybe I should just make a card telling him how I feel about him."

Amber shook her head and held up a hand. "Wait, you're just going to give him a card telling him that you like him?"

Sofia blinked. "Yes."

Amber was aghast. "You can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because if he doesn't know you like him then that changes everything! You're supposed to catch his attention first, then let _him_ confess his love for _you_. There was never a quicker way to ruin love than for a woman to confess it to a man, it only scares them away. You have to get him to fall for you first."

Sofia bit down on her lip. That made sense…somewhat, but… "Valentine's Day is only six days away. How am I supposed to get him to fall in love with me and confess it in six days?"

A grin lit up Amber's face like she had just been challenged and decided to accept. "Don't worry, Sofia, I know everything there is to know about love."

"How?"

Amber reached forward and held up her book as if it was the answer to world hunger. "Romance novels, of course! I've read them all. Everything there is to know about love is in those pages. Follow my advice, and you'll have this mystery man falling for you in no time."

"Amber, I don't think that's such a great idea. Real life isn't like a book."

Amber scoffed. "Of course it is! Haven't you ever heard the story of the poor village girl who fell in love with a prince and became a princess? That's just like what happened to you."

"Except it was my mom who fell in love with the King, and we weren't poor. We had a shoe business."

"It's close enough!" Amber said, waving a dismissive hand again. "Trust me, Sofia. I'm the love expert here."

"Well…" Sofia thought about it for a minute, and realized she didn't have any better ideas. Amber might be able to help her, so she decided to give it a shot. "All right. What do I have to do?"

"Just sit here. I'll go get the book and show you what you should do first."

Sofia gave a nod as Amber stood and walked down the stairs to the first floor. Her eyes traveled over to the book Amber had been reading, scanning over it curiously. Amber said the answer to all her Valentine's Day problems was inside romance novels. She picked up the book and opened it to the page Amber had marked, then began to read.

_'__Eloisa mimicked her lover, pulling the chemise over her head to reveal two small white mountains, with perfectly formed tulips at the top of each one. Jack lowered his mouth to the budding flowers and—'_

Sofia stopped reading and raised one eyebrow in questioning. Wait, what was happening? One minute the girl was removing her chemise, and the next the man was leaning down to eat a flower—realization suddenly dawned on Sofia. She let out a small yelp of both horror and shock as the book fell from her hands and onto the floor. That was _not_ the kind of book a princess should be reading! Leaping to her feet, she hurried down the stairs after her sister.

"Amber, I don't think this is such a good idea!" she said when she finally found her sister.

"Why?" Amber asked as she lifted up onto her toes to grab a book from a high shelf.

"Because I don't want Ce—" Sofia immediately cut her sentence short, and started over. "I don't want my crush to…" She glanced around before leaning forward and whispering, "to eat my tulips!" She could feel her face burn just remembering what was written in the book.

"What?" Amber face twisted with confusion, but a second later realization replaced it. "Oh, you read the page I marked?" When Sofia gave a nod, she laughed. "Don't worry, I won't make you do anything like that. Stuff like that _stays_ in the books…at least until your wedding night."

Sofia glanced down at the floor in embarrassment while Amber flipped through the book. When she heard Amber snap her fingers she looked up. She turned the book around so Sofia could see it and pointed to a picture. A woman wearing a very revealing dress was being held in the arms of dark-haired man wearing a loose white shirt that revealed his muscles.

"You want me to…wear a dress like that?" Sofia guessed, slightly horrified. "Amber, I don't think that's really appropriate—"

"No, Sofia," she interrupted, rolling her eyes, then continued in a tone like she was trying to explain arithmetic to a small child. "In the books, the woman always trips and fall, and the hero always catches her, like right here. Then, as they stare into each other's eyes, they fall in love. All you have to do is walk towards your mystery man, trip, and then let him catch you. Then stare into his eyes and he'll fall right in love."

"But what if he doesn't catch me?"

Amber waved away her idea as if it was absurd. "Oh don't be silly, a man will always catch a woman when she falls. That's just how it is."

Sofia looked nervous, so Amber leaned over and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry. If you follow my advice, you'll have him singing you poetry and declaring his unrequited love for you by Valentine's Day."

Sofia thought about Cedric doing either of those things, and almost burst out laughing at the thought. She wasn't sure about the aforementioned acts, but if Amber said it would make him fall in love with her, then she was willing to try it. After all, what could possibly go wrong?

* * *

><p><strong>First off, I'd like to thank my amazing Beta-reader, <strong>_FlynnieG_** for reading over my story and giving me suggestions to make it better.**

**Hope you all enjoyed the prologue! There will be about twenty to twenty-two chapters in all and this will be a light-hearted romantic comedy with a lot of slapstick and parodies of famous romantic **cliché**s, so go ahead and subscribe if that's the kind of story you're looking for. Let me know what you think so far. :)**


	2. Practice Makes Perfect

_Chapter One – Practice Makes Perfect_

Sofia sat on Amber's bed, swinging her legs idly while Amber read aloud from the romance novel. She was supposed to be listening intently, studying the perfect way to trip and fall, but her mind was wandering instead. What if her attempts failed? What if Cedric didn't feel the same way? She'd be so embarrassed, and everything would be weird between them after that. But was she supposed to simply ignore her feelings? No, she had to do this.

Something very sharp suddenly flicked her arm. With a wince, she glanced up to see Amber frowning at her. Sofia reached up and rubbed the sore spot on her upper arm.

"You didn't have to flick me."

"You weren't paying attention. You need to learn this stuff so you'll be ready to use it at school tomorrow," Amber said, crossing her arms. Sofia was confused for a second, but finally realized what Amber had assumed.

"Oh, he doesn't go to our school."

Amber's eyes widened slightly. "So he's a village boy, then?"

"No."

Amber gave her a tolerant look. "Don't tell me you've fallen for one of the servants around here."

"No, he's not a servant…technically," Sofia said carefully. It was true. Cedric wasn't a servant, even though they sometimes treated him like one.

"Then who is the mystery guy?"

"I'll tell you who it is if your idea works, okay?" Sofia bargained, knowing that if she ended up with Cedric everyone would find out eventually.

"Fine," Amber said, but she didn't look fine with it at all. She placed the book on the bed and stood. "All right, now let's practice."

Sofia stayed sitting where she was and raised an eyebrow. "Practice? All I have to do is trip and fall."

"No, you have to do it _gracefully_, otherwise it doesn't work. Do you want to look like a duck having a seizure?"

"No."

"Then you have to practice, so you look like a graceful swan landing."

Sofia stood and nodded. "Okay, what do I do?"

Amber walked over to one side of the room, while Sofia stood on the opposite side. "Pretend I'm the guy you like and walk towards me, then trip and fall so I can see what you need to improve on."

Sofia took a deep breath and they began to walk towards each other. As she came closer she thought about what Amber had read to her. Why didn't she pay better attention? She didn't know what to do. When she was only a foot away she pretended to trip, leaning forward. She felt her arms automatically flail as she fell. Her mind went into brief panic mode as the floor came closer. She kept waiting for Amber to catch her, but instead she hit the floor with a loud thump.

Sofia sat up and frowned at Amber. "You were supposed to catch me."

Amber sniffed and looked down at her nails. "No, I wasn't. The guy you like is supposed to catch you, I'm just teaching you how to trip and fall." She did extend a hand to help her up though, so Sofia forgave her quickly. "Your tripping is good, but your falling needs a lot of work. You looked like a chicken flapping its wings around when a fox chases it, and you're supposed to turn your body around as you fall."

"Why?" Sofia asked, tilting her head slightly to the side.

"Because when he catches you, you want to be facing him so you can gaze into each other's eyes."

Sofia still had a confused look on her face, so Amber let out a huff as she walked a few feet away. "I'll demonstrate in slow-motion."

She walked straight towards Sofia, and when she was only a foot away she stopped. Amber leaned forward slightly while still keeping her feet firmly planted on the ground so she wouldn't actually fall. "Okay, when you're at this angle, turn your body around and hold your hands out gracefully in front of you." Amber spun around so her back was to Sofia, and leaned backward. She put her hands out in front of her to demonstrate, but Sofia thought that move looked more like a zombie than a graceful swan. "Or keep one arm by your side and press the back of your other hand to your forehead, like you're swooning." Amber demonstrated this move too.

"Now put your arms around me so I don't fall." Sofia did as she was told and wrapped her arms around Amber's waist from the side. When Amber leaned back Sofia let out a huff of breath and struggled not to drop her. She finally saw what her sister meant. Sofia was now holding Amber as if they were doing a dance and she was dipping her.

"Then when he catches you, gaze up into his eyes like he's the dreamiest man in the world, and if you're lucky he'll lean in for a kiss." Sofia pulled her back up and Amber straightened out her dress. "Now you try."

"Just a minute." Sofia walked back over to the bed and grabbed as many pillows as she could carry before placing them where she had fallen last time. With a frown, Amber walked over and kicked the pillows aside.

"No, no, no, Sofia. When you fall for real you won't have a pillow to cushion your fall. You'll have a man's strong, _rough_ arms catching you, so you need to get used to falling onto a hard surface."

Sofia gave her an irritated look, which Amber easily returned. Finally she caved in and decided to just ignore the sting whenever she fell. She crossed over to her side of the room and began to approach Amber again. It took a few more tries, but Sofia finally got the hang of it, preferring to place her hand against her forehead instead of holding her hands out in front of her. When she had finally completed the training exercise to Amber's satisfaction, she was rewarded with a smile. Even all the bruises and scrapes she'd gained couldn't get her spirits down.

"Good, now all you have to do is go find your mystery man and fall into his arms."

As Sofia walked out of Amber's room she thought about how to use what she'd learned. Cedric would probably stay holed up in his workshop for the next few days, getting everything ready that King Roland had requested, so she should go up there.

Sofia finally made it up to the tower and knocked on the door. A moment later Cedric opened the door. "What is it?"

"I just wanted to…" Sofia froze when she realized she didn't have a good reason to be there, and she doubted he'd be happy to learn she came there to trip and fall into his arms. "I'm bored."

Cedric raised an eyebrow. "What do I look like? The Royal Circus?"

"I won't get in your way. I'll just sit quietly and watch," Sofia said, giving him a bright smile. He let out a sigh and relented.

"All right." He pulled the door wide open and quickly ushered her inside. She headed towards the table against the wall just as Cedric said, "And don't sit on my table."

She gave him a grin as she hoisted herself up onto the table and sat there defiantly. His lips twitched, like if he wanted to smile but knew he shouldn't encourage her. After a moment he let out a huff and muttered under his breath, "Why do I even bother?"

Sofia sat there for a few moments, looking around the room while waiting for the perfect moment. There wasn't a lot of room, she noticed. With various empty vials littered around the workshop, she'd have to be careful where she tripped. She couldn't just walk up to him while he was brewing his potions. There was nothing in the romance book to prepare her for a situation like this. After a few minutes with Cedric just adding things to the cauldron and looking through the needed ingredients, Sofia started to get bored and began swinging her legs. Finally, Cedric took a step back and began looking around the room.

"Now where did I put that bottle of Dragon's Breath?" Cedric muttered to himself. Sofia immediately sat up. A few months ago she became his apprentice for a couple of weeks in return for help with her spells. She had put the Dragon's Breath up on a high shelf so it wouldn't get knocked over.

Sofia jumped up from her seat and ran over to the shelf. "I'll get it!"

She lifted up onto her toes and grabbed it, then started walking towards him. As she prepared herself to trip, she suddenly realized that if she did, the bottle of Dragon's Breath would break, and not only would Cedric be angry with her, but it would also be dangerous. Frowning a little, she walked over to him and handed it over.

"Thank you," he said as he uncorked it and poured some into the cauldron. Sofia gave a nod and took a few steps back. Maybe she should just start walking towards him now and pretend to trip. Yes, that was a good idea.

She took a deep breath and took a couple of steps before tripping as she had practiced so many times before. As she spun around, she let her hand fly to her forehead, but saw that Cedric had his back turned to her. Sofia only had a second to realize this before she fell into a pile of empty cauldrons. Dust flew into the air as Cedric spun around at the commotion. Sofia looked up to see him chasing after a pot that was rolling away.

"What happened?" he asked. Sofia frowned when she saw that he wasn't fussing over her like the hero in the book had.

"I tripped and fell."

Once Cedric had all the pots back in order he finally looked over at her, mildly concerned. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, crossing her arms.

Sofia felt a little bit better when he offered her a hand. With a slight smile she took it, and felt her heart beat just a bit faster when he reached forward and brushed his fingers across her cheek. Heat seared across her skin where his fingers had touched her. She looked up at him in surprise. Had her plan worked after all?

"You had a bit of dust on your face," he said when he saw her surprised expression, and took a step back. She felt her cheeks flush and nodded as she cast her gaze to the ground.

"You should probably leave, it's a bit of a mess in here," he said, nodding towards the door. Not wanting to give up, but embarrassed by her failed attempt, she only nodded and left the tower.

Wandering aimlessly, she finally ended up in the kitchen and decided to have some ice-cream. That always cheered her up. After she was finished, she decided to head back up to Amber's room. Maybe she could give her some more pointers, or help her come up with another way to get his attention.

On her way, she passed the throne room and caught a glimpse of Cedric inside. She immediately stopped. Creeping up to the door, she peeked inside. Cedric stood before King Roland, who was talking loudly enough for Sofia to hear.

"In addition to that list I gave you I want the whole ballroom to have roses and vines crawling along the walls and ceiling, with heart shaped lanterns floating in the air. I also want a special punch that tastes exactly like what each person wants it to taste like," her father said, making grand gestures with his hands. "Oh, and I want you to perform a magic show for all the guests. Can you manage that?"

Sofia could hear the nervous tone in Cedric's voice as he answered, but also the determination. "Of course, Your Majesty."

"Good. That will be all."

Sofia ducked back when Cedric turned and headed for the door. She knew that if she just stood there he'd discover she'd been eavesdropping. A conveniently placed tapestry hung on the wall only a few feet away, and Sofia ducked behind it just as Cedric walked out the door. She held as still as possible until she heard his footsteps walk past her.

Sofia came out from behind the drapery just in time to see his figure round the corner. She frowned to herself, realizing that in her panic, she'd missed a good opportunity to fall. This was her second chance! With the castle layout engraved in her mind, she took a quick moment to think about what route he'd take back to his tower, and took off down the hallway in the opposite direction. If she hurried, she could intercept him and carry out her plan.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, here's Chapter One! Thanks to all the people who subscribed, favorited, and reviewed! :)<strong>

**I'd like to give a big thanks to my beta-reader, **_FlynnieG. _**Without her help and suggestions, this story wouldn't be as good as it is today. :)**


	3. Falling

_Chapter Two – Falling_

Sprinting down hallways and ducking through shortcuts, she finally jumped a low brick wall and ran through the castle garden like monsters were chasing her. She vaulted over a wall to the other side, and smiled when she saw that she'd arrived before Cedric. Leaning against the wall, she tried to catch her breath. When she heard footsteps approaching the corner she stood up straight and began to slowly walk towards Cedric just as he turned the corner.

He gave her a slight smile when he saw her, and a big smile slipped across her face when she thought about what would happen next. Five feet…this time she'd be ready!...four feet…Sofia could feel her hands shaking with anticipation…three feet…two feet…Sofia readied herself…one foot!

She lurched forward and spun around mid-fall, pressing one hand to her forehead. She saw a pair of arms make a grab for her, but they missed. Wait, what? A moment later she felt her body hit the marble floor. Hard. Pain exploded in her head, and she heard Cedric let out a cry of surprise.

"Sofia!"

When she finally opened her eyes and the black around the edges of her vision faded she saw Cedric's concerned face staring down at her. A moment later she realized she was lying on the floor. He hadn't caught her.

"Why didn't you catch me?" Sofia asked, pouting. Cedric's worry gave way to annoyance when he realized she was perfectly fine.

"I tried, but you fell too fast," he said before offering her a hand. She gladly accepted it and he pulled her to her feet. "Are you all right? You're especially clumsy today."

"I'm fine. Perfectly fine," she said. Making sure she was steady on her feet, he gave a nod before continuing down the hallway.

Well, that was a complete disaster…again.

* * *

><p>"Wait, so he didn't catch you?" Amber asked as both she and Sofia sat on her bed, looking incredulous.<p>

"Twice," Sofia groaned, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on top.

Amber let out a huff. "I don't understand, a hero is always supposed to catch the women. Maybe you did it wrong."

"No, I did everything you said."

"Well, you should try it again."

Sofia thought about it for a moment. She was lucky to find Cedric out of his workshop. He probably wouldn't come out soon, and she didn't intend on staking out at the bottom of his tower stairs. She couldn't go up to his workshop and try tripping in there again, she might knock something over. There wasn't a lot of free space, and even less than usual since he was busy. She gave Amber a nod before taking her leave. When Sofia got to her room she found Clover, Robin, and Mia sitting on her bed.

"Hey, Princess!" Clover said as he took a bite out of a carrot. Robin and Mia chirped a greeting.

"Hey, guys," Sofia greeted them, trying to sound happy, but they had known her for ten years, and could tell when something was bothering the princess.

"Is something wrong, Sofia?" Mia asked.

She walked over to the bed and sat down beside them. "Well, I'm trying to get this man I like to notice me. Amber has been helping, but he hardly ever leaves his room!"

"You have a crush? Oh, who is it?" Robin chirped excitedly.

Sofia only had to hesitate for a second. She had always told her woodland friends her secrets, and she wasn't about to stop now. They could always be trusted. When she opened her mouth to tell them Clover suddenly held up both paws, stopping her.

"No, wait, let us guess!" he suggested.

Despite herself, Sofia smiled. "Okay."

"Is it someone we know?" Clover asked, and Sofia nodded.

"Is it a prince?" Mia chirped, and Sofia shook her head.

"Is he close to your age?" Robin asked.

Sofia thought about it for a minute, and then said, "Define _close_."

"Less than ten years apart."

Sofia shook her head and Clover sent her a sly grin. "So my Sof likes an older man, huh?"

Sofia blushed and laughed nervously. "I guess so."

"Does he live in the village?" Mia asked, and once again Sofia shook her head.

"Does he work at the castle?" Robin asked, suddenly looking very excited, and when Sofia nodded she let out a tweet. "I know who it is!"

"Who?" Clover asked, looking perplexed.

"It's Baileywick!" Robin exclaimed, and Sofia started to laugh out loud at the idea.

"No, it's not Baileywick," Sofia assured them once she had stopped laughing.

"Well, then who could it be?" Clover asked, with Mia and Robin agreeing with him.

"It's Cedric," Sofia finally told them.

Clover scrunched up his nose. "Cedric? The sorcerer?"

"Why?" Mia asked before Sofia could answer. "He's so _old_."

"Sofia can like whoever she wants," Robin said, jumping to Sofia's defense. "Besides, it's not that uncommon for a younger girl to court an older man."

"I just think Sofia should date someone her own age—like maybe one of the boys from her school," Mia replied.

Clover hopped over to Sofia and took one of her hands into both his paws. "I don't know what you see in him, but if you love him, then I say go for it."

"I agree," Robin said.

"I guess you should follow your heart," Mia quietly admitted.

Sofia smiled fondly at her friends. "Thanks, you guys. Your acceptance means a lot to me."

"So, you were saying you had a plan?" Clover asked.

"Yeah, Amber said I should trip and fall into his arms, but he hardly ever leaves his workshop—"

Clover held up a paw. "Say no more, princess. We know exactly what to do."

Mia gave him a confused look. "We do?"

"Just go outside to the gardens and wait. We'll take care of Cedric." Sofia started to protest—she wanted to know exactly what they planned on doing—but Clover cut her off. "Trust us."

Sofia decided to just let them do whatever they were planning—they were going to do it anyway. When she arrived at the garden she walked around, pretending to look at all the flowers while she waited for Cedric to arrive.

"Get out of my workshop, filthy creatures!" she heard him yell all the way from his tower, making her glance up in alarm. Were her friends all right? A few minutes later she saw Cedric walking in her direction. She waited until he was within earshot to approach him.

"What happened, Cedric?"

"Three pesky creatures came into my workshop and ate all my ragweed and hemlock!" he complained as he bent over and pulled a few branches from a nearby bush.

"I'm sure they didn't mean any harm," Sofia said, holding back her laugh. That sounded like something they would do!

"It doesn't matter, I suppose. What I want to know is how they got in my workshop," he went on as he continued to pick various plants from the garden.

"What happened to them?" she asked. Sofia knew her friends had done it to get Cedric out into the garden so she could carry out her plan, and she didn't intend on wasting it, but she had to know they were okay.

"I chased them out the room."

Sofia nodded. "Maybe I could help you with your plants."

"If you wish," he replied absentmindedly, tugging on a particularly stubborn vine of ragweed. As Sofia walked over to him she went over everything Amber had taught her. Four feet, three feet, two feet, one foot…

"Oh no!" Sofia cried out to gain his attention as she fell. He jumped and dropped all the plants in his hands as he reached out to catch her. As she pivoted on her toes a pair of arms suddenly reached out and caught her…arms that weren't Cedric's.

She looked up to see Baileywick staring down at her, looking concerned. "Are you okay, Princess?"

"Oh, yes. Perfectly fine. Thank you, Baileywick," she said as she stood upright, and turned to see Cedric standing beside her. He pulled his arms back, a slightly irritated look on his face.

"Where did you come from?" Sofia asked. How did he manage to appear out of practically nowhere?

"Oh, I came out here to get some strawberries for the castle cook. She needs them to bake the giant strawberry cake for Valentine's Day." Baileywick glanced up and gave Cedric a pointed look. "It's a good thing I did, or else you might have gotten hurt."

"I would have caught her if you hadn't shown up!" Cedric argued.

"Yes, of course you would," Baileywick shot back, doubtful. "Well, I've got to get those strawberries. Just remember to watch where you're walking, Princess."

"I will," she said, a frown on her face. She knew she couldn't be mad at Baileywick since he was only trying to help, but she was still upset her plans had been ruined once again.

As she trudged away she felt stubbornness take hold. This wasn't working out at all, so she should be more proactive. Marching back inside the castle, she made up her mind. Cedric would be coming back in soon, and instead of walking past him and tripping, she'd launch herself at him and then he'd have to catch her. Yes, that plan would definitely work!

With new determination, she walked up the stairs to the landing. She'd see him as he came up the stairs and have time to prepare. A few minutes later she heard footsteps heading up the stairs and ran to where the second flight of stairs began. She bounced on the tips of her toes, and when Cedric finally came into view she began walking towards him. Waiting until he was a few feet away from the ledge of the stairs, she ran and launched herself at him, causing him to cry out in surprise.

She felt him wrap his arms securely around her waist, but only experienced the joy of succeeding for a moment. The force with which she'd launched herself at him caused him to lose his balance and stumble backward, dragging her with him. He let out a cry as his feet left the ground and they both went tumbling down the flight of stairs. Cedric took most of the fall, being the one who went down first, but they finally landed in a mess of tangled limbs. Pain shot all over Sofia's body, and when she looked down she saw her leg bent at an odd angle. Fear seized her and she looked up to see Cedric gazing down at her leg too.

"Don't worry, I can heal it!" He began patting his pockets, trying to find his wand. He let out a groan when he finally pulled the two broken pieces of his wand from his robe pocket. "Oh no."

Sofia started crying, pain flaring up her leg as she tried to move. Cedric carefully untangled himself from her, trying not to touch her foot. Then he gently picked her up and hurried up the stairs to his workshop. She wasn't sure how he managed to unlock the door while still holding her, but the next thing she knew, he was sitting her down on the table he always scolded her not to sit on. She choked back the tears as he grabbed a spare wand and walked over to her.

"Hold still," he said, and despite all the pain, she felt a tingling, pleasant feeling as he gently held her leg still and said the magic spell. A second later a warm feeling spread all over her foot and the pain disappeared. She reached a hand up and wiped away the tears from her cheeks.

"What happened back there?" he asked, referring to the stairs incident. "You've been falling all over the place today."

"I was in a hurry and wasn't looking where I was going," she said, and when she finally met his gaze she saw a bruise already forming on his cheek. She reached up a hand and lightly brushed her fingers across it. "Are you all right?"

He pulled away, looking uncomfortable. "I'm fine. Are you?"

She nodded. "Yes. Thank you for healing me."

"No problem."

With nothing left to say and a sense of failure settling over her, she hopped down from the table and walked out of his workshop. She decided to go back to Amber's room. The whole falling routine wasn't getting her anywhere, and she didn't feel like risking anymore broken limbs. Maybe Amber had an easier way to get his attention. After all, she said there were tons of tricks the women in romance novels used to get the hero to fall in love with them.

Sofia was never one to wallow in self-pity, and could already feel her spirits rising. She'd find some way to get his attention, she just had to keep trying!

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks to everyone who subscribed, favorited, and reviewed—they mean a lot to me. :) Hope you all enjoyed chapter two! Just so readers know, I will update this every week (usually on Friday or Saturday).<strong>

**I'd like to give a big thanks to my beta-reader, **_FlynnieG. _**Without her help and suggestions, this story wouldn't be as good as it is today. :)**


	4. Dangling

_Chapter Three – Dangling_

When Sofia entered Amber's room she sat up from her sitting position and closed the romance novel she had been reading.

"Did it work?"

When Sofia shook her head Amber frowned. "I tried it four times. The last time we ended up falling down the stairs and I broke my leg." Amber glanced down at the supposedly broken leg and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, but Cedric fixed it."

Sofia's eyes widened when she realized what she had just admitted. She was sure Amber would make the connection, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Well it's a good thing Cedric was nearby. Broken bones aren't very romantic."

Sofia felt a small sense of relief that her secret was still safe. She just wasn't ready for everyone to know she liked Cedric. She felt he deserved to know first, and then everyone else could find out when they were ready…if they ever got together, that was.

"We'll just have to raise the stakes," Amber said, forming a fist and pounding it down on the palm of her hand like a judge calling for order in the courtroom.

"What do you mean?"

Amber picked up her book and beckoned for her to come closer. When she sat down next to her sister, Amber handed her the book and Sofia glanced at the title: _Outlaw Of Love_. Amber flipped to the middle of the book, where Sofia saw a picture of a scantily clad women lying in the path of an oncoming stagecoach—mouth open wide in a scream, with one hand pressed against her forehead. A shirtless man on a stallion could be seen in the background riding towards her.

Sofia sent Amber a sharp look. "I am not letting you run me over with a stagecoach."

Amber pouted. "Oh, fine. But we can make your mystery man _think_ you're in danger—then he'd have to save you! After a woman is saved she always gives the hero a kiss and _voilá!_ They fall in love and live happily ever after." The idea sounded appealing, but Sofia wasn't totally convinced.

"What would I have to do?"

"Well, we just have to find a dragon and have him kidnap you, and—"

"No! I am not letting a dragon kidnap me!" Sofia exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips.

Amber waved a hand. "All right, fine." She thought for a second and then snapped her fingers. "Well, there was this one romance novel where the princess was kidnapped by an evil sorcerer who held her for ransom! Hey, maybe we can get Cedric to pretend to be evil and kidnap you!"

Sofia closed her eyes and let out a tolerant sigh. "Amber, if Cedric pretends to kidnap me dad will throw him in the dungeon." _And it would totally defeat the purpose of all this_! she thought to herself.

Amber put a hand on Sofia's shoulder, making her open her eyes again. "That's a price you have to be willing to pay."

"Well, I won't. Cedric is one of my best friends."

"Why do you have to make this so difficult?" Amber grumbled before tapping her chin in thought. "Oh! I got it! Since this mystery man lives at the castle we could have you dangling from a tower ledge!"

Sofia's mouth dropped open a little. "I am not—!"

Amber held up a hand, cutting her off. "Just hear me out. You have a good grip and strong arms from all those years of Flying Derby racing, right?" Sofia thought about it and nodded. "So you wouldn't really be in any danger. You'd just have to hold on and dangle there until your mystery man saves you!" Well, when Amber put it like that… "We just have to make sure your mystery man walks outside so he'll be sure to see you."

"I don't know, Amber. What if my hands slip?"

Amber waved another dismissive hand. "Oh, don't worry about it. I'll help you practice holding on tomorrow at school, during your free period."

Well, if there was a chance it would work, and it was mostly safe, then Sofia was willing to give it a go.

"All right. Tomorrow during free period."

* * *

><p>The next day Amber showed up outside Sofia's geography class. It was five minutes before the bell rang, and Sofia could see her outside the small glass window, waiting for her to get out so they could go to the gym. Since Amber and James were two years older than Sofia, they had both graduated already, while Sofia was set to graduate in a few months. Even though the twins had graduated they were allowed on campus during lunch and free period to visit their friends who were still in school. When the bell finally rang Sofia stuffed the book into her backpack and ran out to meet her. They moved away from the door so all the other students could get out.<p>

"Are you ready?" Amber asked, and Sofia nodded. Suddenly there was the sound of a girl laughing loudly, and they both turned to see Princess Adriana laughing with Prince Hugo down the hall. He gave her a kiss on the cheek before throwing an arm around her shoulder and walking away.

Sofia turned her gaze back to Amber and was surprised to see pain and sadness in her normally cheerful brown eyes. She knew her sister had flirted with Hugo for a while, but that had been a couple years ago. Everybody thought they would start courting, but their complicated relationship ended a couple weeks before Amber graduated. Amber had taken it pretty hard, and refused to talk to anyone about it. In fact, now that Sofia thought about it, she realized that was when Amber had started reading romance novels in her spare time. She was about to ask her about it when Prince Desmond stepped up to them.

"Hey, Amber," he said, a lopsided smile on his face.

Amber's mood instantly changed and her eyes seemed to light up. "Oh, hi, Desmond."

"What are you doing here? Uh, not that I'm not glad to see you or anything, but you never seen to stop by anymore," he said nervously.

"Oh, I came to see Sofia," Amber said as she flipped a strand of hair over her shoulder. Sofia looked in between her sister and Desmond, a smile growing on her face. They liked each other!

"I'm sure everyone would like it if you stopped by more often," Desmond suggested shyly.

Amber flipped her hair again. "Maybe I will. I'll have to see if I can find time in my schedule…and you'll just have to wait and see." At this she flashed him a bright smile. Sofia could see that Desmond was utterly spellbound by her.

"Hey, Desmond, come on!" one of his friends called from down the hall. He turned away reluctantly.

"Be there in a minute!" He turned back to them and gave a slight bow. "See you later, Amber! Bye Sofia!"

Amber fluttered her fingers in a wave as he walked backwards for a few steps before turning around and running after his friends.

"Well, we'd better go and practice," Amber said before Sofia could question her about Desmond. She made a mental note to inquire about it later. They made it to the gym a few moments later. Since most students preferred to go outside or read and study in the library, they would be the only ones there. Amber grabbed a stopwatch from the basket of equipment, then led her sister over to a pull up bar.

Amber waved a hand at it and Sofia walked over, raising her hands to grip the metal bar. "Just hang on for as long as you can."

Sofia nodded and bent her legs behind her so they wouldn't be touching the ground. After a few seconds her hands started to hurt, but it was nothing she wasn't already used to. After a good flying derby workout her hands and legs were usually a little sore.

After a couple of minutes her arms started to burn, and the palms of her hands went numb. A thin sheet of sweat formed on her forehead, but Sofia still held on. Finally, when she couldn't bear it any more, she dropped her feet. There was a brief flash of pain that shot through her hands as she released her grip. Sofia bit down on her lip and waited for the pain to pass.

"That was four minutes. That should be enough time for your mystery man to come out and see you dangling there." Amber tapped her chin while Sofia slowly flexed her fingers, trying to relieve some of the pain. "Oh! I almost forgot—you need a new dress!"

"What's wrong with my dress?" Sofia asked, looking down at her pastel purple dress, adorned with pearls and other jewels.

"It's fine for everyday use, but you want to catch your mystery man's attention this time! Let him see you wearing something new and bold as you dangle helplessly from the ledge!" Amber exclaimed, throwing a hand across her forehead like she would faint at any moment. Sofia giggled.

"All right, what should I wear then?"

"Hm, I've got an idea. I have this charming little purple and black dress that would suit you nicely, though it is a shade too dark for your amulet. It really is hard to pick out clothes for you since you refuse to take it off. You wouldn't believe how many colors clash with that purple jewel."

Sofia instinctively reached up to clutch the amulet. After ten years of various villains trying to take it from her, she had become very protective of it. That was another thing she loved about Cedric—he had always shown a special interest in the amulet and wanted to help her protect it. However, in the last couple of years he had shown a lot less interest than before. Maybe he thought she didn't need his help anymore.

"Thank you, Amber. The dress sounds lovely, but I won't take off the amulet."

Amber pressed her lips into a thin line. "Well I suppose the colors won't clash too terribly. You can keep it on."

* * *

><p>When the carriage carrying Sofia and Amber finally pulled up to the castle, Amber literally dragged her out of the carriage and up to her room. Sofia sat patiently on Amber's bed while she walked into her closet, emerging a minute later with a frilly dress that was more beautiful than Sofia could have imagined.<p>

There was a wide, purple frill adorning the square neckline, and the sleeves were cut short, just how Sofia liked them. The gown had a slim waistline, and a couple inches below it, the purple skirts pulled back to reveal an underskirt of fine, black silk.

Amber helped Sofia into the dress, and even had to tighten her corset to make it fit, but when she looked in the mirror she had to admit she almost didn't recognize herself. She looked different in the dark, contrasting colors, but found that she still preferred her soft purple dress. However, it was a nice change of pace, and Cedric would definitely notice her in it.

"Ok, do you know which tower ledge you want to dangle from?" Amber asked. Sofia thought about it for a moment. She knew that there was a large, rectangular window in Cedric's workshop, and directly across from it was a blue-tiled tower steeple. If she dangled from there Cedric would surely notice her from his window. Hopefully.

"Yes, but I don't know how to get up there. It's the blue tower steeple at the front of the castle on the right side."

"The one in front of Cedric's workshop?" Amber asked, and Sofia felt her body stiffen. If she said yes, Amber would make the connection, but she couldn't really lie about the location.

"Yes."

Amber gave Sofia a sly grin. "That's one of the castle defense towers, so your mystery man must work for security." Sofia felt her body relax, and decided not to say anything to either confirm or deny Amber's assumption. "Well lucky for you, I know about a secret door that was cut out from the tiles. I'll just lower you down from the trap door so you can grab onto the ledge."

Amber grabbed Sofia's hand and led her to the supply closet, grabbing a long cord of rope before setting off to the tower.

* * *

><p><strong>In response to an anonymous review: there won't be any chapters from Cedric's point of view. The whole premise is based on how Sofia views the situation and what she does in response, but there will be glimpses from her point of view as to how Cedric feels about her. At the end his feelings will be revealed, though, whatever they may be. ;)<strong>

**Thanks to everyone who subscribed, favorited, and reviewed! Your support means a lot! :) Hope you enjoy this chapter! ;)**

**I'd like to give a big thanks to my beta-reader, **_FlynnieG. _**Without her help and suggestions, this story wouldn't be as good as it is today. :)**


	5. Don't Look Down

_Chapter Four – Don't Look Down_

When they arrived they got in without a problem and began the climb to the top. Sofia was surprised by the sheer amount of stairs there were; they seemed to spiral up into infinity. They finally made it to the top landing a few minutes later and Sofia let out a sigh of relief. After taking a minute to catch her breath she glanced up and looked around in confusion. There were no other doors or stairs.

With a sly grin Amber lifted up onto her toes and pulled down a folded ladder from the ceiling. It was made of wood, and had no marking to show that it was a trap door, which was why Sofia hadn't noticed it. They both climbed the ladder up to the cramped, dusty rafters, then Amber pulled the ladder up behind them.

She walked over to a tilted wall, which Sofia knew was the steeple tower and pushed a clearly marked square, revealing another trap door. Sofia let out a gasp at the sight. They were so high up that she could see for miles and miles. She spotted the window to Cedric's tower and smiled. So far, so good. When she turned back to look at Amber she saw her making a ring with the rope. She walked over to Sofia and handed the large loop to her.

"You can sit on this like a swing and I'll lower you to the ledge, then I'll let the rope fall and reel it back in, okay?" Amber explained, and Sofia nodded. She took a deep breath before pulling the rope down over her body and fitting it around her bottom. She moved to the trap door and carefully climbed out, making sure to hold tightly onto the rope.

Sofia felt a little dizzy when she looked down and realized how high up they were. _Just don't look down,_ she told herself, _you do this all the time when you ride Minimus, this isn't any different._ But she knew it was. On Minimus she was safe—this was dangerous.

Amber lowered her down and when she reached the ledge she had to let go and trust Amber not to drop her. She reached up and grabbed onto the side with both hands, firmly grasping the rough tile ledge.

"Okay, I'm holding on," she said, and felt the rope go slack. She shook her body to get the rope to drop down, and as soon as it fell from around her ankles Amber pulled it back up.

"Good, now just scream for help and your mystery man will save you!" she heard Amber say.

"And what are you going to do?"

"Oh, I'm going to go watch from the ground. I can't wait to see your mystery man catch you!" Sofia could hear the glee in Amber's voice. "I can just feel the romance!"

Sofia felt her breath stall in her throat and her limbs freeze up. "Wait, you can't just leave me—"

"Don't worry, you'll do great! Good luck!" Amber replied in a sing-song voice, then Sofia heard the trap door shut.

Sofia felt her breath come in short gasps when she realized just how much danger she was in. She twisted her head to look behind her, and saw that Cedric was nowhere near the window. In fact, she couldn't see him at all!

"Help me! Someone help!" she cried as loud as she could. The tile dug painfully into her skin. Her hands started to burn, but she clung to the edge for all she was worth. Sofia heard a sudden commotion from down below and turned to see some servants running out the front doors, probably to see who had screamed for help. A collection of cries came from them when they saw Sofia dangling from the edge. Then she saw Baileywick come running out, freezing on the steps when he saw what was happening.

"Princess Sofia!" he cried out. "Just hang on!" He turned to the other servants and called out instructions for a large white sheet to be brought out, then turned to some guards and pointed up at the tower. They took off running and Sofia realized they were going to try and pull her back in. She twisted around to see if Cedric had noticed her yet. No such luck.

"Help! Somebody save me! Please, help!" she screamed. When she looked back down she saw a couple of servants running out the front doors carrying a large white sheet in their hands. Baileywick followed them and she watched as they spread the sheet out beneath her, to catch her if she fell.

"Just hang on, Princess!" Baileywick called up. "The guards are coming to pull you back in!"

She looked straight ahead and let out a sigh. This was a complete disaster! Not only did she risk her life, but Cedric didn't even notice that she—

"Sofia!" she heard his voice call out. She turned her head back around and saw him leaning out of his window, eyes widened to the size of tennis balls.

"Cedric! Help me!" she cried. Suddenly she felt herself drop and almost lost her grip as the tile groaned. She screamed and her heart jumped into her throat, but she managed to keep her hold. The tile was breaking because it wasn't meant to bear so much weight. Her hands were slick with sweat, and she could feel her fingers slowly slipping. "Cedric! Save me! Please, help!"

"Hang on, Sofia!" he called out.

Suddenly the tile gave a lurch and broke away. Sofia squeezed her eyes shut and let out a scream only to find that she wasn't falling. When she looked back up she saw that a magic spell was holding the tile in place.

She barely had time to let out a sigh of relief before she felt her fingers lose their grasp. Sofia plummeted down, flailing her arms and legs wildly. A bright shot of magic flew right past her, missing her by mere inches. A second later she felt her body hit something soft but durable.

"Now lower it gently," she heard Baileywick's voice call out, but it sounded so far away. She felt her whole body shaking from the fear and black spots clouding her vision. When she finally felt solid ground beneath her she felt like crying, but managed to hold it in. She looked up and saw servants crowding around her, stepping on the white sheet that had caught her.

"All of you get back to work, the Princess needs her space!" Baileywick ordered, and the servants reluctantly dispersed and went back inside the castle. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her and gently pull her to her feet. A second later her legs gave out beneath her and she collapsed to the ground.

"Is Sofia all right?" she heard Cedric's voice ask. Her head snapped up to see him running out of the castle entrance.

"She's fine, just a little shook up," Baileywick assured him, bending down beside Sofia to check for any minor injuries. When Cedric reached them he dropped down beside Sofia and she felt herself calm down now that he was there. He only had to reach forward to place a hand on her shoulder before she launched herself at him, holding onto him as if her life depended on it. He stiffened up at first, but a moment later she felt his arms wrap around her in an attempt to comfort her. She felt safe in his arms, and suddenly the tears she had held back started streaming down her face. Sofia buried her face in his soft velvet robe, breathing in his scent and trying to calm her fried nerves.

"Princess?" she heard Baileywick ask once she had calmed down. Reluctantly pulling away from Cedric, she turned to face him. "What happened? What were you doing up there?"

Despite herself, she let out a laugh at the absurdity of the situation. "Oh, you know, just hanging."

Cedric let out a snort of laughter, which he immediately tried to cover up as a cough. When Baileywick shot him a pointed look he straightened up. "Well at least we know she's fine."

"Sofia? Are you all right?" she heard Amber's voice call. Sofia turned to see her emerge from the entrance to the tower. She didn't see her fall from the ledge after all. Sofia shot her a deadly glare. She was going to have serious words with Amber later about all this!

"I'm fine," she answered coldly.

"Baileywick, what happened?" Amber asked, acting like she hadn't been the one to orchestrate this whole thing.

"For some reason Princess Sofia was hanging from the edge of the tower, but we managed to catch her when she fell," Baileywick explained.

Amber's eyes widened, although Sofia could see that this time she _was_ actually surprised. "Wait, _you_ caught her?"

"Yes. Well, me and a few other servants."

"Cedric helped!" Sofia blurted out, and both Baileywick and Amber looked at her. Even Cedric looked a bit surprised. "He held the tile in place when it was about to fall."

"Yes, but you fell anyway, and when he tried to catch you he missed," Baileywick sniffed. When Sofia looked at Cedric she could see him withdrawing, lips pressing into a fine line.

"Yes, I missed, as always," he muttered to himself as he stood. "If you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

As Sofia watched him walk away she felt horrible. All she'd wanted to do was give him a little bit of credit, but she'd only ended up making it worse. Baileywick stood as well, offering a hand to Sofia and pulling her to her feet.

"Princess, what happened? Why were you hanging from the edge?" he questioned again.

Sofia looked down at her shoes. "I was looking out the trap door of the tower and I leaned over too far." She heard Baileywick let out a sigh, and when she looked back up she found a disapproving look on his face. "Thank you for saving me."

His expression softened. "No problem, just be more careful from now on."

When she gave a nod Baileywick turned and strolled through the front castle doors. Just as he went in, Sofia saw James run out, heading towards them. Suddenly Amber stepped in front of Sofia, blocking her view. Sofia opened her mouth to scold Amber, but she spoke first.

"Sofia, I know the heart wants what it wants, but I think Baileywick is too old for you."

Sofia's angry words instantly vanished and she was at loss for words for a couple moments. "What? But…no, I'm not in love with Baileywick!"

"You don't have to be embarrassed, Sofia. Girls often have crushes on older men." Amber reached forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. "But don't worry, we'll find someone more age appropriate for you."

James skidded to a halt beside them, looking back and forth between Amber and Sofia. "I heard Sofia fell from a tower. What happened?"

"Oh, Sofia was just trying to get Baileywick to notice her," Amber said before Sofia could get a word in. "She has a crush on him.

"No, I don't!" Sofia snapped, feeling her cheeks flush with embarrassment. This was worse than having them know she liked Cedric.

Amber leaned closer to James and said in a hushed voice, "She's just embarrassed to admit it."

James turned to Sofia. "Don't worry, I can keep a secret."

"But I'm not in love with Baileywick!" Sofia cried, then remembered there were still people around that could overhear her.

"I won't tell anyone, Sofia. I promise," James said with a smile, making an x across his chest with a finger.

Before Sofia could reply Baileywick appeared at the castle steps. "James, it's time for your violin practice!"

James' smile instantly turned into a grimace as he turned and trudged up the steps. When both James and Baileywick were gone Sofia spun around to face Amber with a glare. "Why did you say that? I'm not in love with Baileywick!"

Amber let out a tolerant sigh and looked down at her fingernails in boredom. "Honestly, Sofia, I don't know why you're reacting like this. You don't have to be embarrassed that you like him, I just think he's too old for you."

"But I'm not—" Sofia tried to say, but was cut off.

"Oh, Sofia, you don't have to deny it—"

"I love Cedric!" Sofia cried, and instantly slapped a hand over her mouth, looking cautiously up at the tower. Thankfully, he wasn't looking out the window, so he probably didn't hear that.

When she looked back at Amber she had a shocked look on her face. Finally, a frown tugged at her lips and her nose crinkled. "_Cedric?_ Why do you love _him?_"

Sofia opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it again. She'd never really thought about why she loved Cedric. The feelings had always been there. Even when she was young she had a small crush on him, she just didn't understand her feelings back then. As she got older her feelings for him only grew and became harder to pass off as admiration.

"I don't know," Sofia admitted, "I just…" She let her sentence trail off.

Amber didn't look convinced. "I think you're confused, Sofia. You just _think_ you're in love with Cedric. But don't worry, we'll find you someone better."

Sofia looked up at Amber and narrowed her eyes. "There's _nothing_ wrong with Cedric, and I'm _not_ confused! You want to know what I love about him? I love the way he makes me feel like I'm home whenever I'm around him. I love the way he smiles and the feeling I get when I know _I'm_ the one who put that smile on his face. I love the way he gets so irritated whenever I say his name wrong. I love when I'm able to make him believe how talented and amazing he is because he deserves to feel special. I love…I love everything about him." Sofia paused to take a breath. "And if that's what you call _confused_ then I'd like to see your definition of clarity!"

Sofia turned away and wrapped her arms around herself, as if trying to hold herself together. She had never told anyone this before, and bearing her heart to Amber like that made her feel vulnerable. When she felt a hand on her shoulder she turned to see Amber staring at her in a way she'd never seen before—like she was just starting to see Sofia for the first time.

"You really do love him." It was a statement, not a question. Sofia nodded and Amber managed to smile. "Well, I guess if you feel that strongly…I can still help you."

A full smile broke out across Sofia's face as she leaned forward and gave her sister a hug. "Thank you, Amber. But no more dangerous stunts. No falling, and definitely no dangling."

"I promise." Amber looked away and lifted a single finger to her chin. "You know, your relationship is kind of beautiful, in its own way. Sort of like Beauty and the Beast."

Sofia frowned. "Cedric is not beastly."

Amber laid on hand on her shoulder and looked at her as if she were a silly child. "Yes, he is, Sofia. But don't worry, I'll help you tame your beast."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! :)<strong>

**Thank you to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! Your comments and support are appreciated. :)**

**I'd like to give a big thanks to my beta-reader, **_FlynnieG. _**Without her help and suggestions, this story wouldn't be as good as it is today. :)**


	6. Hair Flipping

_Chapter Five – Hair Flipping_

Sofia sat in her sister's room the next day. After school ended Amber had literally pulled Sofia from the carriage and up to her room, claiming she had a brilliant idea. Amber currently had a book propped open on her knees, reading a selected sections out loud. Sofia glanced at the title—_Taming The Beast_. Apparently Amber was taking the whole 'beauty and the beast' thing seriously. Still, Sofia listened intently. When Amber was done she closed the book and looked up at Sofia.

"All right, what did the woman do to get the beast to fall in love with her?"

Sofia thought for a minute. "Smile? I smile all the time, and it doesn't seem to be working."

Amber rolled her eyes. "No, she gave him a special smile that was only for him. There's a difference. She also flipped her hair, which caught his attention. Men love it when women flip their hair, it's very flirty. It also helps that you have beautiful hair. The hero in the book always love to run his fingers through the woman's long, silky hair."

Sofia was momentarily stunned. Not by the fact that the men loved to run their fingers through women's hair, but by the fact that Amber thought her hair was beautiful. She reached a hand up and ran a finger across her hair, feeling the softness of it. Sofia never really thought much about her hair before, except when her tiara got snagged it in sometimes. "You really think my hair is beautiful?"

Amber smiled. "Of course. It's almost as beautiful as mine."

Sofia smiled. She knew anyone else might be insulted and think Amber rude, but she knew how highly Amber thought of herself. For Amber to compare someone to herself was a high compliment. She turned and caught sight of herself in the mirror. Spinning around, she craned her head back to get a good look at her hair. It was quite long now, reaching halfway down her back, and it had gentle waves with a curl at the end. Looking at it right then, she did admit her hair looked rather nice. She only hoped Cedric thought so as well.

"All right, let's practice. Flip your hair over your shoulder."

Sofia lifted a hand and flicked a loose strand of hair from her shoulder. "Like that?"

"No, you look like you're swatting a fly off your shoulder. Do it like this." Amber reached up and flipped a strand of hair over her shoulder, using the back of her hand and tilting her head back as she did it. Sofia instantly recognized the move, remembering how Amber had done the same thing yesterday when she was talking to Desmond. She was right, Amber had a crush on Desmond—maybe even loved him. "Also know the spinning hair flip." Amber turned her back towards Sofia and then spun around a moment later, her hair fanning around her face. "And if you're lucky enough to catch a breeze, work with it."

"Okay, how about this?" Sofia leaned over and then moved her head in a circular motion. When she straightened up she saw a disapproving look on Amber's face.

"That's whipping your hair around, not flipping it." She let out a sigh as she walked over to her vanity table and picked up a ribbon, typing her hair up into a ponytail. "There's also another hair technique. Watch."

She reached up and pulled the ribbon out in one swift motion and then shook her head as her hair fell gracefully around her shoulders. "You have to do it right the first time, though, because if you keep tying your hair back up and pulling the ribbon out it looks weird."

"What if it doesn't work? What should I do then?"

Amber thought for a moment. "Ok, here's another technique that Princess Hildegard taught me three years ago when I was trying to get Prince Hugo's attention. It's called the Flip and Smile. First, drop something, then bend down to pick it up." Picking up a small ring from her vanity table, Amber tossed it to the ground, then bent down to pick it up. In one swift motion she popped back up, flipping her hair back. "That was the flip part. Then you give him a big, flirty smile." Amber demonstrated while Sofia took mental notes.

"Ok, I think I have it."

"Now let's work on your smile."

Sofia gave Amber a smile, but Amber only frowned in response. "No, that's your regular smile. This one needs to be different. Smile bigger."

Sofia kept widening her smile until all her teeth were showing and her lips felt stretched. "Now just widen your eyes a little more." Sofia did as Amber instructed, and felt a sense of accomplishment when Amber sent her a thumbs up.

She walked over to Sofia and pulled her hair up into a ponytail using the ribbon. "Just remember what I taught you, and you should be fine. Now go to him and remember to flip your hair, not whip it."

With a nod Sofia set off for the tower stairs. There was no way she could mess this up. With a flip and a big smile Cedric would finally notice her!

When she arrived at the wooden door she gave a knock and Cedric opened it a moment later. "What is it?"

"I came to see if you had any…um…uh, warthog sweat?" Sofia stuttered out, wondering why she didn't think of an excuse on the way up there.

A confused look appeared on his face. "What do you need it for?"

"School project," she lied easily, feeling bad about being so deceptive lately.

"All right, come on in," he turned and motioned for her to follow. As soon as she entered she turned around and closed the door behind her. When she turned back around she saw Cedric pull a vial down from the shelf and hold it out to her. She took the vial from him and walked over to the table pushed against the wall. Moving aside a single lit candle and setting the Warthog Sweat next to it, she hoisting herself up. Cedric's jaw clenched at this, and Sofia grinned.

"If that's all you need, then please leave." He walked over to a bubbling cauldron sitting on a table in the middle of the room. "I'm very busy and I don't need distractions."

"I won't be a problem." She carefully worded her response. She knew that if she did exactly what Amber said, she'd definitely be a distraction, but that was the plan.

"That's what you said a couple days ago, and then you fell into a pile of cauldrons."

Sofia only stared at him, unmoving, until he mumbled something and returned his attention to the potion in front of him. He must have realized that trying to get her to leave was useless. She set the vial of warthog sweat next to her.

"Cedric?" she asked after a few moments.

"What?" He glanced up, and Sofia took the opportunity to grab the ribbon and give it a tug. All went well, until she felt the ribbon snag in her hair. Cringing at the slight pain to her scalp, she continuing tugging at the ribbon, trying to free her hair.

Finally, she grabbed the ribbon with both hands and gave a sharp tug. As the ribbon flew across the room her hair snapped back and hit her in the face, sending some tresses flying into her mouth. She spat out the hair and opened her mouth, pulling out the difficult strands. When she finally looked up at Cedric, he was clutching at his stomach as he laughed.

She supposed she should feel some pride at making him laugh, but he was supposed to be awestruck, not laughing at her. Still, a smile tugged at her lips, and when he was done laughing she shook out her hair like Amber told her to. When she looked at his reaction she was a bit disappointed to see amusement.

"What do you think of my hair, Cedric?" she asked, flipping some of her hair back with one hand.

He looked a surprised and even a little confused by this question. "Uh, it looks…healthy?"

Sofia smiled at the compliment. "Why, thank you!"

Sensing that his answer was satisfactory, he turned his attention back to potion-making. Sofia hopped off the desk and decided to try the Flip and Smile tactic. She waited until Cedric wasn't watching and then pushed a small dropper off the table. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Cedric glance up to see what had made the noise, while she pretended not to notice his watching eyes as she hopped down from the table and bent over to retrieve it. With a quick snap she popped up, giving herself a head rush. She gave him a big smile and opened her eyes as wide as she could, but her smile instantly faded when she saw he wasn't looking at her anymore.

She walked over to his worktable and stood only a foot away from him, giving him her best wide-eyed, toothy grin when he turned to look at her. An eyebrow shot up as he leaned away, looking slightly scared.

"What's wrong?" she asked, her smile disappearing.

"Why were you giving me that creepy look?"

"Creepy?" she asked, giving him a frown. Well, Amber's Flip and Smile plan obviously wasn't working, so maybe she should just try the hair flipping part. Flashy would be the best way to go; it was so unlike her that it would be guaranteed to get his attention. When Cedric turned his gaze back to the cauldron she knocked his wand off the table. At the small clatter he turned and glanced down at it.

"Oops. Sorry, let me get that," she said as she bent over.

"I'll get it," he said at the same time.

Sofia grabbed the wand before he could and as she shot up, felt her head hit something. Biting down on her lip, she lowered her head a bit before slowly lifting it. When she heard a moan her eyes caught sight of Cedric stumbling back, holding his hands over his nose. She let out a gasp when she saw blood seeping through his fingers.

"Oh, Merlin's mushrooms!" he groaned.

"I'm so sorry," she said, taking a step towards him. He held out a blood-stained gloved hand to stop her and then pointed to his book of spells.

"Look up a healing spell," he said, teeth gritted in pain. Sofia lowered her head in embarrassment and guilt as she walked over to the book. Flipping quickly through the pages, she finally found the spell. When she glanced back at Cedric she saw him with his head tilted back, a white cloth pressed against his nose.

She found the wand still gripped in her hand and pointed it at him, muttering the healing words. There was a sharp crack and a hiss of pain from Cedric, but a moment later he let out a sigh and pulled the cloth away. Sofia put the wand down and walked over to him as he wiped the blood away from his nose.

"I am so, so sorry. I didn't know you—"

"It's all right. It's fine," he interrupted, holding up a hand. "Please, just…if you're going to stay, stand over there." He pointed to the table she always sat on and she nodded.

Walking over to the table, she decided not to antagonize him after what she'd just done, and only leaned against the table instead of sitting on it. True, it was an accident, but she would rather not push her luck. Despite all that just happened, she was torn between walking out, and trying the hair flipping trick one last time. If she just stayed over by the table there would be no chance of hurting him, and she didn't hike up all those stairs just to have it be a complete disaster.

She flicked the dropper off the table again, waiting until he glanced over at her to bend over. With one swift movement she grabbed the dropper and snapped back up, tossing her head back and flipping her hair. To her chagrin, he looked rather unaffected, except for a bit of concern in his eyes.

"Is there something wrong with your neck?" he asked.

Sofia let out a sigh. "No, I'm fine."

He gave a shrug and then reached down for a bottle sitting next to the cauldron, pouring some of it into the mixture. As she watched him a foul smell filled her nose. It smelled like something rotten, like maybe bad eggs or a skunk. She turned her head slightly and saw that the window was closed. Where could that awful odor be coming from? Sofia scrunched her nose up and looked around the room.

"What is that smell?" she asked, placing a hand over her nose.

"What?" Cedric asked, looking up. When he caught sight of her, his eyes widened and he ran out from behind the table towards her. Sofia felt a warm feeling on her back and suddenly noticed smoke curling up all around her. Wait, smoke?! Sofia let out a cry and turned her head to see that the end of her hair was on fire. Small red flames licked up her hair, and suddenly the back of her dress felt _very_ hot. Sofia let out a scream as she jumping away from the table she ran around the room, looking for water or a blanket to put it out.

"Hold still!" Cedric cried, pointing his wand at her. _"Exorior __aqua!"_

Sofia turned just in time to receive a blast of water in her face. When it finally stopped she spit out a mouth full of water and looked down to see that she was totally soaked. _At least my hair isn't on fire anymore, _she thought to herself.

Cedric rushed over to her. "Are you all right?"

She gave a nod and grabbed her hair, pulling it in front of her to inspect the damage. A good part of her hair had been burned off. Instead of the curl at the end of her hair, there was only a stiff blackened crisp. When she reached a finger up to touch it, the burnt ends crumbled away, falling to the floor. She could feel tears forming in her eyes, blurring her vision. All she had to do was flip her hair, and she managed to set it on fire. Why didn't any of her plans _work_?

"I have a hair growth spell," Cedric offered. Sofia gave him a small smile, but shook her head.

"No, it's all right. I was going to get it cut anyway." She walked over to her vial of warthog sweat and picked it up. "I'm just going to go before I ruin something else."

"I think that would be best," he said, but there was compassion in his eyes.

Sofia turned and walked away, closing the door behind her. Leaning against the door, she took a deep, calming breath before descending the stairs. When she showed up in her sister's room, dripping all over the place and leaving a trail of water behind her, Amber's eyebrows shot up.

"What happened to _you_?"

Sofia stared down at the ground as she answered. "I must have done the technique wrong, because I bent down and when I popped back up, I accidentally broke Cedric's nose." At this Amber let out a loud, very unladylike snort of laughter, falling back into her pillows.

Sofia frowned and put her hands on her hips. "It's not funny, Amber."

When she finally calmed down she sat back up and dabbed at her eyes. "I'm sorry, but I can just imagine that happening. So, why are you wet?"

"Well, after that I _tried_ to do the trick, but I stood too close to a candle and my hair caught on fire. Then Cedric conjured up some water to put it out."

Amber had enough sense not to laugh at that, but Sofia still saw how her lips twitched. She wanted to laugh, but instead got up and walked over to her sister. Inspecting the damage, she gave her a sympathetic look.

"Come on, let's get you changed."

Walking into her bathroom, Amber helped Sofia dry off and then change into one of Amber's old dresses.

"What am I going to do about my hair?" Sofia asked, inspecting the blackened ends.

Amber gave Sofia a smile. "I know just what to do."

Before leaving, Amber quickly grabbed a book from her shelf, then led Sofia down a flight of stairs into a large room with purple walls and red curtains pulled away from the tall, rectangular windows. Sofia recognized the room as Madame Delacre's, the Royal Hair Stylist. Just as Amber sat Sofia down on a chair the Madame walked in, gasping when she saw the state of Sofia's hair.

"_Sacrebleu!_ What has happened to _ze_ princesses' hair?" she exclaimed, rushing over to her.

"She had a little accident with fire. Can you fix it?" Amber said before Sofia could speak.

Sofia could see an offended look cross the Madame's face in the mirror. "Of course I can fix it! _Zat_ is why I am _ze_ Royal Hair Stylist!"

Sofia closed her eyes, not wanting to look as her burnt hair was chopped off. A while later she heard the Madame announce, "_Viola!_"

Sofia peeked one eye open and saw—to her surprise—that her hair looked just like it did ten years ago. She had let it grow out since then, but seeing it short again brought back a lot of fond memories and she smiled.

"Thank you, Madame Declacre, I love it."

The Madame seemed very pleased with the compliment. "You are very welcome, Princess."

With a bow she turned and left them when Amber nodded towards the door that led to the Madame's adjoined room. Sofia stared at her reflection and reached a hand up, twisting a finger around the curly end of her hair. She liked this even better than her previous hair style.

Her fond reminiscing was interrupted when Amber stepped forward and handed her a book. _Lady and the Tramp_, was written on the front in big, bold letters. With a weary look she glanced up at Amber.

"Another plan?"

"Don't worry, this one will work, I'm sure of it. You can't give up now, Sofia."

Sofia wasn't one to give up easily, but even she was beginning to feel disparaged. "I'm not so sure any of this is working. I certainly get his attention each time, but how do I know if he's falling in love with me, or if he just thinks I'm crazy? How do I know if it's working?"

Amber paused to think about it. "You'll know it's working when he either asks to court you, or gives you a kiss. That's what you should be aiming for." Amber reached forward and tapped a finger on the book. "This will get you a kiss for sure."

Sofia closed her eyes, drew a deep breath, and then opened them once again. "All right, what do I need to do?"

Amber held her hand out and pulled Sofia up. "Let's discuss it in my room."

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><p><strong>This is a bit longer than my usual chapter, but I couldn't see splitting it into two chapters. Also, I put some <em>Legally Blonde<em> references in this one. ;)**

**I'd like to give a big thanks to my beta-reader, **_FlynnieG._** Without her help and suggestions, this story wouldn't be as good as it is today. :)**

** Hope you enjoy! :)**


	7. Just A Little Girl

_Chapter Six – Just A Little Girl_

Sofia sat cross-legged on Amber's bed, absorbing everything she said. She glanced down at the open book in front of her with a picture of two dogs sharing a plate of spaghetti. Somehow they began eating the same noodle and their lips—or rather, their snouts—were almost touching.

"Since Cedric messes up practically everything, he doesn't have a lot of confidence," Amber said, and Sofia shot her a frown. "What? It's true. Anyway, men who lack confidence sometimes need a little _push_. If you use this trick, you'll be sure to get a kiss, and then the rest will fall into place."

"How do I get him to share a plate of spaghetti with me?"

"Well, he needs to eat sometime, so tomorrow at lunch I'll come and pick you up at Royal Prep," Amber began. Everyone knew that the seniors were allowed to leave the campus for their hour-long lunch break, but most chose to eat there. After all, they served some really good food in the cafeteria. "I'll have a servant waiting with a basket. There will be two covered plates inside, both with spaghetti, since it would seem suspicious if you only went to his workshop with one plate. You suggest eating outside, and as you two eat, I'll be nearby playing the accordion, just like in the book. Just do exactly what they do in that scene."

With that, Amber picked it up and began reading the passage aloud. By the time she was finished Sofia was feeling confident that her plan would work this time. Suddenly, Sofia noticed a flaw in the plan.

"But if there's two plates of spaghetti it won't work."

"Just 'accidentally' drop your plate, then he'll have to share his with you." Sofia gave a nod, but Amber still noted the nervous expression on her face. "Remember—Cedric doesn't have a lot of confidence in himself, so make sure you assert yourself a little, but don't be pushy. Let him be the man and make him feel useful. Butter him up a little. Just be the sweet, innocent girl you always are." She put a hand on her younger sister's shoulder. "As your older sister, I would never steer you wrong. If you follow my advice, Cedric will be yours in time for Valentine's Day."

Sofia gave her a smile, realizing that Amber had her best intentions at heart. In that moment she firmly believe that if she followed the plan, Cedric would notice her and fall in love with her. That sweet thought was what kept Sofia going, even though all their past plans had failed.

* * *

><p>Sofia rocked back and forth on her feet on the stone steps of Royal Prep, waiting at the appointed place for Amber to arrive. Her hands clutched the straps of her purple backpack.<p>

"What are you doing out here, Sofia?"

Sofia jumped and spun around to see Prince Desmond standing behind her. "Oh, I'm just waiting for Amber. I'm having lunch back at the castle."

His face lit up. "Princess Amber is coming here?"

"Yeah," Sofia said with a smile.

"Oh, I'll be right back!" he exclaimed, running back inside. He came out a couple minutes later with a rose in his hand, and together they waited. Finally, Sofia spotted the royal carriage in the sky. As soon as the royal coachmen slowed down she ran over to the carriage with Prince Desmond following behind at a slower pace.

When Amber saw him she smiled and stood up, opening the coach door for herself. Desmond stood at the steps, holding the rose out to her. "I saw this in the gardens and thought you might like it."

"Oh, it's very pretty," Amber said, and put a foot on the carriage step, like she was going to get out. She suddenly tripped, and Sofia watched in amusement as she spun around while falling, holding her hands out in front of her. Desmond was quick to react and caught her. Sofia felt a slight twinge of jealousy. If only she could do it as easily as Amber did.

"Oh, thank you for saving me," Amber said with a dazzling smile. He turned every shade of red imaginable as he quickly helped her back onto her feet.

"N-no problem," he stuttered out. "Well, I'd better…I'd better be getting back inside."

He turned and jogged back to the school steps, nearly tripping over a flower pot because he wasn't looking where he was going. Sofia and Amber both giggled as they climbed into the carriage.

"Do you have everything ready?" Sofia asked as the royal coachman took off, and Amber gave her a nod in response, then turned her attention the rose in her hands.

"He seems to really like you," Sofia said. Amber's smile widened and she ran her fingers over the soft pedals.

"It would seem so."

Sofia wanted to ask Amber if she felt the same, but since she hadn't volunteered any information she decided to wait for her sister to tell her when she was ready. The ride home was silent as Sofia went over the plan in her mind and Amber looked off into the distance with a smile on her face. When they arrived at the castle Sofia jumped out of the carriage before it came to a complete stop, nearly twisting her ankle in the process. A servant rushed forward, helping her up before holding out a brown wicker basket.

"Amber instructed me to give this to you, Your Majesty."

"Thank you," Sofia replied with a smile, and turned around to see Amber delicately climbing down the step, holding the hand of the coachman as he helped her down. Sofia followed her inside, and they parted ways at the base of the stairs that led up to Cedric's workshop.

"Take him out to the south gardens so you two can hear the romantic music, okay?" When Sofia gave a nod she smiled. "Good luck."

When she reached the top of the stairs she took a deep breath before knocking on the door. Cedric opened the door and frowned at her, pointing to the stairs.

"Oh no, I won't have any distractions today!" he said bluntly, shutting the door in her face. Sofia frowned and stuck out her bottom lip. What would she do now? Her eyes drifted over to the statue, and then to the talon that held the key to Cedric's workshop.

She retrieved the key and opened the door for herself. When she swung the door open and walked in she saw Cedric stare at her in surprise.

"You might want to find a better hiding spot." She grinned, holding up the key.

His eyes narrowed at her. "I'm going to get a new lock on that door."

Sofia shut the door behind her. "I brought you food."

He turned his attention back to the cauldron he was currently pouring a potion into. "I'm not hungry."

Sofia frowned back at him and put a hand on her hip, holding the basket handle in the other. "You need to eat."

He finally relented with a roll of his eyes. "Fine, just leave it on the table, but you need to leave after that."

Sofia walked over to the table and placed the basket down before walking over to Cedric. "No. Come and eat with me in the south garden, it's lovely outside and you've been working too hard. You need a break."

He let out a huff and turned to give her a frown. "Sofia, I really don't have time to argue with you. I need to finish this potion."

"Is it for the ball on Saturday?" she asked, stepping up right beside him.

"Yes. It's a potion that will make the punch taste different to each guest who drinks it, and it's a very delicate concoction, so I must be precise. I can't have any distractions."

"I won't be a distraction." She walked over to the table and sat herself on top of it. "I'll just sit here silently until you're done—then we can go and have lunch out in the gardens." _Or until I have to leave and fly back to Royal Prep…whichever comes first,_ Sofia thought to herself, but she was willing to take the risk.

"Just having you sit there is a distraction," he blurted out, and then his eyes widened suddenly, like he'd said something he shouldn't have. Sofia tried to figure out what it might be.

"How is _that_ a distraction?"

His face flushed and turned a slight shade of pink that Sofia found adorable. "Just…you…sitting there…" he stuttered out, then frowned when she grinned. "You're so naïve, Sofia. Just like a little girl."

Sofia felt her face grow hot. It was what she had always believed—he still saw her as a little girl! She was about to retort that she _wasn't_ a little girl, when she remembered what Amber had told her. This was her chance to make him feel useful—to make him feel like a man who she needed.

"Yes, you're right," she said, hopping down from the table and walking over to him. He glanced up at her in interest when he heard her admission. She gave him an innocent smile before beginning to sing.

_"__I am eighteen going on nineteen, I know that I'm naïve. Fellows I meet may tell me I'm sweet, and willingly I believe."_

"Exactly," Cedric replied, before returning his attention to the brewing potion in the cauldron.

Sofia went on, _"I am eighteen going on nineteen, innocent as a rose. Bachelor dandies, drinkers of brandies, what do I know of those?"_

He put the vial down and looked over at her. She gave him an innocent smile before continuing, _"Totally unprepared am I to face a world of men."_ She reached forward and walked her fingers up his arm, making his eyes grow wide. _"Timid and shy and scared am I of things beyond my ken."_

She noticed with a grin that he only half-heartedly batted her hand away. She leaned in close, making him lean away slightly. _"I need someone older and wiser telling me what to do. You are—_" She abruptly stopped, realized she couldn't remember how old he was. "How old are you?"

"Thirty-five, now leave me alone," he snapped, picking the vial back up and pouring some into the cauldron.

_"__You are thirty-five going on thirty-six,"_ she sang, reaching up with one hand to brush her fingers through his white strip of hair. He jumped, his hand accidentally spilling the entire vial in the mixture. "_I'll depend on—"_

There was a sudden explosion, and when the smoke finally cleared Sofia could see a purple Cedric glaring at her like he wanted to strangle her. Sofia pressed her lips together to keep from laughing, knowing it would only make him angrier.

"Sorry?" she finally said.

"That took me hours to make!" he exploded.

Sofia took a step back, eyes wide. "I-I'm sorry. Really, I am."

He let out a sigh, leaning forward with his hands pressed against the wooden table. Slowly, he reached up a hand and massaged one temple. "All that hard work…it's all ruined." Finally, he took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "I need a vacation."

Sofia tried to think of something to make him feel better. "I can't offer you a vacation, but I can offer you a spaghetti lunch." She ran over to the basket and picked it up, then walked back over and held it out for him to see.

"Yes, I think I need a break." He looked around at the mess the ruined spell had created. All around his workshop were splotches of purple, and a few things had fallen from their places on shelves and tables. "I'll…" He let out a sigh. "I'll clean it up when I get back."

"Of course."

"I'm going to clean up and change. You might want to do the same." When she gave him a confused look, he waved a hand at her. "You're purple too."

As he walked downstairs to his bedroom she ran over to a mirror to inspect the damage. She saw, to her amusement, that Cedric was right. Being right next to him when the potion exploded, her face and hair had been hit. She walked upstairs to where she knew a small washbasin was, and began scrubbing the purple away.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed! I'd also like to thank my beta-reader, <strong>_FlynnieG_**, who helped me improve this story with her suggestions. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! :)**

**The lyrics in this chapter are from the song **_Sixteen Going On Seventeen_ **from **_The Sound Of Music_**.**

**A quick message to **_KILLjoyLunaTIC_**: you don't have PM enabled, so I can't reply personally, but thank you for your review. :) If you're looking for more Cedfia stories, I have a community for them. Not all of them are romance, but there's some good stories there.**


	8. Spaghetti

_Chapter Seven – Spaghetti_

Once she was cleaned up she walked downstairs to see Cedric waiting for her. His face and hair still held a slightly purple hue, and she was sure hers did as well. She skipped out the door with Cedric following, taking the back stairs to the cobblestone path which led to the south gardens. A checkered blanket was folded in the basket, so she took it out and laid it down on a patch of grass at the edge of the garden. From there they had a beautiful view of the flowers, and the border of trees shaded them. Sitting down on the soft cotton, she pulled out both plates. A moment later Cedric joined her, sitting down opposite her.

He picked up his fork and twisted some spaghetti around it, while Sofia thought about how she could accidentally spill her food. He was sitting right in front of her, and if she just dropped her plate, he'd know she did it on purpose. She had to distract him long enough to flip her plate over.

Suddenly a loud noise filled the air—a mix of the piano and another instrument. It must be Amber with the accordion. Sofia had never heard the instrument played before, but she had imagined it to sound light and airy—romantic. The sound that cut through the previously serene air was anything _but_ romantic. At the sudden disruption a flock of birds flew up into the air and headed away from the noise.

As Cedric raised the fork to his mouth his eyes darted to where the music was coming from, an irritated look on his face. "What is that infernal noise?"

Sofia let out a nervous laugh. "Oh, that's just Amber practicing her accordion."

"She certainly needs it if she plays like that," Cedric said.

She noticed he was still searching for where it was coming from, and saw his distraction as her opportunity. With one quick movement, she slipped a finger under the edge of her flawless china plate and sent it flying up. Cedric must have seen the movement in the corner of his eyes, because they flicked back over to her and widened in alarm as the plate flipped over, sending the spaghetti tumbling.

_"__Consto!"_ he cried, whipping out his wand. A bolt of magic shot out, catching the plate of spaghetti before it hit the ground. Sofia cursed inwardly. Why couldn't he have that good of a shot when she was falling from the roof? He said another spell and moved the plate underneath the spaghetti, making sure it was all back on the platter. She reluctantly reached out and grabbed it as he released the spell.

"Thank you," she mumbled, trying to sound grateful. It must have sounded fake, because Cedric frowned and turned back to his food.

"Don't try and sound too happy," he replied sarcastically. "I think we should go somewhere else." He threw a sharp look in the direction of the accordion noise. "I can't eat with that noise."

"All right."

They packed up the food and walked around the castle to the riverbank that acted as a moat. As they neared the water Sofia saw another opportunity. When she was only a foot away from the rushing waters she threw her plate into the water, making it look like she tripped and accidentally spilt it. Sofia silently cheered when the spaghetti landed in the water and sunk below, along with the expensive plate. She heard Cedric step up beside her and looked up to see him gazing at the site where her food was lost.

"Oh no, what will I eat?" she asked, hoping he would get the hint. "I guess I'll have to go back to school hungry."

"I guess you will," he said, glancing at her. "That's very unfortunate."

He must have seen the surprise on her face because he cracked a smile and began laughing. When she realized he was joking she laughed along with him, smacking him playfully on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, you can have mine. I'll just go to the kitchen and get something."

"Oh, but I was thinking we could share," she said, grabbing his arm when he turned to walk away. He gave her a glance before finally nodding.

"I suppose."

They both spread the blanket near the castle river and put the plate between them. She glanced up at him and dug her utensil into the noodles. Cedric was about to lift the fork to his mouth when he paused. "Hey, shouldn't you be in school?"

"I'm on my lunch break," Sofia replied. "I wanted to come and have lunch with you. I know how stressed you must be, with Valentine's Day coming up and everything."

He nodded. "You don't know the half of it."

"But I know you can do it. You always do," she said, trying to make him feel better. He was always so unsure of himself, but she saw how great he was, he just needed to believe in himself.

"I'm just glad Tangu is hosting next year's Valentine's Day ball. It will be _their_ Royal Sorcerers' headache." He ate the food on his fork and then stabbed the spaghetti again, swirling his utensil around. "I see you've fixed your hair."

Sofia swallowed the spaghetti she had been chewing and brought her fork down to the plate. "Yeah, I had the burnt ends cut off. I was planning on getting it cut short anyway."

"It looks nice like that," Cedric said with a smile and Sofia felt herself blush at the compliment.

He put the fork into his mouth just as Sofia did, but she was disappointed when she realized they weren't sharing any of the same strands. With a start she realized she wouldn't be able to tell if they started eating the same noodle. The spaghetti twisted and curved all around the china. Sofia let out a sigh. The only thing she could do was stuff half the spaghetti in her mouth and hope one of the noodles was the same one he happened to be eating.

She leaned over and started shoveling the food into her mouth, nearly choking when her cheeks became full. With a glance at Cedric she saw his eyes widen.

"Hey, don't hog it all!" he chastised her, leaning over to bring the fork to his mouth before she could eat it all. He stabbed the spaghetti and brought a forkful to his mouth. A small thrill ran through Sofia's body she was felt a tugging and then spotted the strand that bound them. She leaned forward, sucking on the noodle when suddenly it snapped and flew back, hitting Cedric in the forehead.

Sofia started laughing when she saw the splatter of spaghetti sauce on his face. A lump of spaghetti slipped down her throat, causing her to choke. When she tried to take a deep breath to cough, she found that she couldn't. Her eyes went wide and panic set in. She jumped up and her hands instinctively clutched at her throat.

"Sofia?" she heard Cedric ask, but she couldn't answer. She bent over, trying to dislodge the food, but it was stuck. A moment later she felt a sharp slap on her back, and then another. She felt the food slip further down her throat.

Blackness bit at the edges of her vision and Cedric's voice seemed so far away. Her knees buckled and she sunk to the ground, scratching at her throat. Something dragged her back to her feet, and then she felt two hands pressed firmly against her stomach. They pressed against her, forcing her to cough. She felt the food move up her throat as the hands continued to press against her abdomen.

Finally, she felt the spaghetti fly from her mouth. With a gasp she drew in her first breath of air, then started to cough. She looked down to see Cedric's arms still around her. He gently placed her down on the grass, moving his hands to her shoulders to keep her steady.

"Are you all right?"

Sofia nodded, feeling so silly. Why was it she always managed to nearly kill herself around Cedric? Suddenly something occurred to her…Cedric had saved her life. Amber said that when a man saved a woman's life she always gave him a kiss.

"Oh, my_ hero_!" she exclaimed, her voice hoarse and her throat still burning. She threw her arms around his shoulder in a hug, then pulled away and gave him a kiss on the cheek. His eyes grew wide and his hands fell away from her shoulders.

"Um…no problem," he finally said, then brushed himself off and stood, offering her a hand. She took it and hesitantly stood, still a little unsteady. "I see you're perfectly fine, as always. Do you enjoy near-death experiences or something?" He turned and gestured to the moat. "Would you like to give drowning a try before we leave?"

She grinned. "Not today, but maybe later." She drew in a breath and then let it out. "I guess I'm just a little clumsy this week," she laughed, trying to brush it off. _Or maybe I'm just trying to get your attention! Why can't you see that? _She silently pleaded with him to understand, but he simply nodded and smiled before starting to gather their things.

Cedric packed up their blanket and half-finished plate, shoving the contents back into the basket. He held the basket in one arm and held his other arm out for her to take. When they had reached Sofia's room he gave her the basket and quickly walked away. Well, that was a total disaster. Even when she followed Amber's advice about rewarding her hero with a kiss, nothing happened.

When Sofia was sure Cedric was gone, she walked down the hall to Amber's room. She still had about fifteen minutes before she had to leave and get back to Royal Prep. After a disaster spaghetti lunch, she needed a pep talk. She found her sister still sitting near her window, practicing the accordion. Amber turned and offered her a smile, but it quickly slid off her face when she noticed the frown on Sofia's.

"What happened this time?"

"The spaghetti noodle broke…and then I choked on my food." Sofia let out a sigh and looked down at the ground as she said it. When she glanced back up Amber put the accordion down and walked over to her, a stubborn look on her face.

"Don't worry, I'll get you and Cedric together if it's the last thing I do!" She glanced over at the tall grandfather clock pushed against the wall. "We have ten more minutes. Come on, help me look through my books. We'll find something for you."

Sofia glanced around at all the books littering Amber's floor, wondering if maybe they were taking this a little too far. Shrugging the idea away, Sofia followed Amber over to her bed. She was about to climb up onto the canopy-covered bed when she noticed a small, white triangle sticking out from under the frilly bed sheets that brushed the floor. Getting down on her hands and knees, she pulled the object out, then realizing the thing sticking out had been the edge of a magazine. _Princess Weekly_ was written on the cover in fancy pink calligraphy, and Ariel was posing for the cover picture.

"Oh, I've been looking for that!" Amber exclaimed, snatching it from Sofia's hands. She flipped through the pages while Sofia looked around at all the books lying on the bed, finally settling on a book titled _Fifty Shades of Purple_. As she opened the book Amber glanced over and saw the cover.

"No, don't read that!" she exclaimed, snatching the book from Sofia before tossing it across the room. Sofia leaned away and raised an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Just trust me on that one," Amber said, handing her another book. Sofia took it and began scanning the pages, hoping she wouldn't happen upon a scene like the one she read three days ago.

The minutes ticked by and Sofia was just beginning to think there was nothing she hadn't tried when Amber exclaimed, "Oh! I've got it!"

"What is it?" Sofia asked, her head snapping up. Amber gripped the magazine in her hands, eyes lit up with delight. Sofia scooting over to see what was on the page. She could only make out the title of the article—_Creating a Romantic Setting_—before Amber tossed it aside, jumping up.

"There's not much time, but if I tell the servants to start right now, I can have everything ready by this evening!" Amber said, clapping her hands in excitement.

"What is it, Amber?" Sofia asked, hopping off the bed.

"I'll tell you when you get back from school." Amber nodded at the clock. "Right now you have to leave."

Glancing at the clock, she saw that Amber was right. She raced back to her carriage and made it back to school on time, but all through her afternoon lessons her mind lingered on what Amber might be planning.

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><p><strong>Well, here it is, a day early. I'm going to be super busy tomorrow and over the weekend, so I figured I'd better post it while I had the time. Thanks to all the subscribers, favoriters, and reviewers. It means a lot. :)<strong>

**Hope you all enjoyed the chapter!**


	9. Swans

_Chapter Eight – Swans_

When Sofia got home she went straight to Amber's room, not bothering to drop her backpack off in her room. Opening the door, she saw Amber look up with a smile and a piece of paper in her hand.

"So, what is the plan?" she asked, dropping her backpack near the door before walking over to her.

"A romantic boat ride!" Amber exclaimed as Sofia sat down next to her on the bed. "I planned everything after you left. Since none of our previous plans have worked I decided to combine all the romantic boat ride ideas from my books into one! At precisely five o'clock go up to Cedric's workshop and ask him to accompany you on a boat ride to see the floating lanterns show. The boat will be waiting for you down by the docks. Don't worry about missing dinner, I've told mom and dad that we'll be dining by ourselves."

Amber handed her a map and Sofia studied it. A red line marked a clear path down several rivers until finally ending at a large lake. The first marked location was the River of Trees, where the trunks grew up from the water and towered overhead. The trees would be in full bloom and at their most beautiful state.

"This is your first stop," Amber said, pointing to it. "And just to add a little more romance, I had the servants place a flock of swans there. Oh, it'll be absolutely beautiful!" Amber gushed, then moved her finger along the red line to another marked spot.

"This is where a band will be waiting, and as you swim by they'll be singing romantic songs. If Cedric asks, they'll say they're practicing for a singing competition held on boats."

She moved her finger along to the final marked spot, a lake. "This is where we'll release the lanterns after the sun has set, right behind the hill across from the lake. That will give you plenty of time to travel through the other romantic locations I've set up. Oh, and I've placed a book of romantic poems in the boat, just in case Cedric really gets in the mood and decides to read you poetry."

Sofia turned to her sister. "Oh, I don't know how to thank you, Amber. It all sounds so beautiful."

Amber smiled and looked down at her nails, pretending it was no big deal. "Oh, I'm just doing my job as your older and wiser sister, but you can pay me back by telling me all the juicy details afterwards."

Sofia laughed and nodded. "You got it."

* * *

><p>At exactly five o'clock Sofia raced up to Cedric's workshop, trying to figure out a way to convince him to go with her. She knew he had a lot of work to do, and taking into account all the times she had distracted him the past few days, he might just say no. Then Sofia thought about all the hard work Amber had put into the plan, and made a promise to herself that she'd do whatever it took get him to accompany her on the boat ride. She arrived at the wooden door and gave a couple of knocks. A moment later it swung open and Cedric let out a sigh when he saw her standing there.<p>

"What is it now?" he asked.

"I'm going on a boat ride to see the floating lantern show at Gooseberry Lake, and I'd like you to come with me," she said with a smile.

"I can't. I'm busy."

"It won't take long. They release the lanterns at sundown, and after that you can come back and work."

"Yeah, it's not like I need to sleep or anything," he replied sarcastically. "Why can't you just go by yourself?"

Sofia remembered how women in romance novels got what they wanted—they buttered the hero up. "I'm not strong enough to row the boat, but you are."

His eyebrows rose slightly at this, but he quickly covered it up, smiling a bit at the compliment. "Yes, I suppose I am." He paused and turned, glancing at his workshop. "But there's so much to do and—"

"Oh, but it would only take up an hour or two of your time. Like I said, I need someone strong to row the boat. I could never do it by myself."

Even before he answered she could see in his eyes that he would agree. "Well, I guess I could spare an hour or two."

Sofia clapped her hands in delight and then grabbed his, pulling him down the stairs. "Great, let's go!"

They found the boat exactly where Amber said it would be—down by the docks—but it wasn't the kind of boat Sofia was expecting. She had pictured a plain wooden rowboat with barely enough room for two people, but the boat tethered to the docks was so much grander. Sofia knew she never would've been able to row this thing by herself. Instead of the wooden benches she had been expecting, there were two plush, red velvet seats on either side, with a couple of fancy pillows and two footstools to complete the look. The wooden bottom she imagined was instead lined with deep red satin. The sides of the boat curved to meet at the ends, where two wooden poles rose up before curving outward. The gleaming wood of the poles reminded her of the bannister in the palace. It was more like a floating bed than a boat, and Sofia immediately blushed at the thought.

She turned to see Cedric's reaction and saw him staring at it, slightly less surprised than she was. _He must be used to such extravagance, growing up a Royal Sorcerer,_ she mused. Even after ten years as a princess, she still found herself surprised by how grand everything was.

"Well, we'd better be on our way," Sofia said, grabbing Cedric's hand and pulling him over to the boat.

He helped her in, then took a seat across from her. A boatman handed Cedric the oars before releasing the rope that tethered them to the dock. Cedric slipped the oars through the small rings on either side of the boat and started to row. As he leaned back, dragging the oars through the water, one suddenly slipped out, hitting Sofia in the face with a cold blast of water.

She looked up at Cedric in shock, only to see her expression mirrored. "Sorry! I've never paddled a boat before."

Sofia smiled and laughed it off. "Oh, it's all right."

It took a few more tries—and a few near misses when water splashed up around them—but Cedric finally managed to get the hang of rowing. Sofia let out a sigh and leaned back, placing her elbow on the wooden surface behind her. She immediately jerked her arm away when she felt a sticky wet substance.

"The boat is wet," she said as she rubbed her elbow on her dress, and looked up to see Cedric furrow his eyebrows. He put the oars down and turned slightly, running a finger across the wooden surface behind him. He brought the finger up to his nose and sniffed it.

"It's a finisher for wood, to protect it from scratches. They must have just put it on if it's still wet."

"Is it dangerous?" Sofia asked, unable to keep the worry out of her voice.

Cedric snorted. "No, it's perfectly safe, but I wouldn't touch it."

Sofia felt her body relax again as he picked up the oars and began to row. They sat in silence, with Sofia enjoying the scenery and Cedric concentrating on what he was doing. Finally they came to a bend in the river, and Sofia pulled the map out from a pocket in her dress. Unfolding it, she scanned the parchment for a brief moment.

"Take the right bend," she said, and Cedric nodded. A couple more minutes passed in silence before Cedric finally spoke.

"Is everything all right?"

"Oh, yes. My hair is almost dry now," she replied with a smile.

"No, I mean at home. Is there anything wrong?"

Sofia furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "No, of course not. Why do you ask?"

"These past few days you've been visiting my workshop a lot…well, a lot more than usual."

"Oh. Well, I like hanging out with you," Sofia replied with a shrug. Cedric opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but then closed it. "What is it?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you're a princess, why do you want to spend your time hanging out with me?"

Sofia frowned. Couldn't he see how much he meant to her—that he was her best friend? But Amber wouldn't like it if she said that; it would be admitting her feelings.

"Because pestering you is so much fun!" Sofia joked instead, and Cedric smiled.

"But shouldn't you be attending parties or going on dates with a prince?" She noticed that his grip on the oars tightened when he said that, turning his knuckles white.

"Maybe I don't want a prince," Sofia replied with a shrug.

He looked confused by that. "Then what do you want?"

Sofia debated whether or not she should say what she thought in that moment. It wasn't exactly telling Cedric how she felt, but it was a big hint, and she wasn't sure where the line was about how much she could tell him. Finally, she took a breath and just decided to tell him exactly what she wanted.

"I want someone who holds me when I cry and who I feel so comfortable with that I don't mind," she began, remembering how comfortable and safe she felt when he held her after her fell from the ledge. "I want someone who I can laugh with and just be silly sometimes. I want someone who will always be there for me, no matter what. I want a best friend."

Cedric looked like he wanted to say something, but just as he opened Sofia caught sight of the Forest of Trees up ahead and let out a gasp. Cedric stopped rowing and turned around to see what it was. The branches of the trees formed a canopy above them, but the most amazing part were the thousands of tiny pink buds that were just beginning to bloom on the branches. When Sofia finally lowered her eyes from the amazing sight and was greeted with another: hundreds of swans swimming all around them.

"Where did they all come from?" Cedric asked, and Sofia turned her gaze to see his eyes on the swans. She smiled and gave a shrug. Even though Amber had told her about the swans, she never imagined there would be so many, or how beautiful it would look.

As they glided under the cover of the trees Cedric lifted the oars from the water to avoid hitting the swans. They covered nearly every visible part of the water. Sofia got worried when the boat slowed down and stopped. They only had a limited amount of time before the sun set and Amber released the lanterns. Cedric must have gotten tired of waiting, because he slowly dipped the oars back into the water and moved them through the water. The oar bumped one of the swans on the rump and he flapped his wings, spinning around to glare at Cedric.

"Hey, I'm swimmin' here!" he yelled, but Sofia knew Cedric wouldn't be able to understand him.

"Be careful," Sofia said. Cedric gave her a look before removed the oars and then dipping them into the water again. He moved them more forcefully through the water that time. Most of the swans moved out of the way, but one swan didn't notice the oars.

The wooden paddle hit him and he let out a cry. "Oh, my back! _My back!_"

"He hit Uncle Kenny!" one of the swans cried, and the other swans started squawking angrily.

"Attack!" another cried.

They all started flapping their wings wildly and rose in the air. They formed a line and began dive-bombing Cedric, delivering painful pecks. He turned and yanked an oar out of the ring, then started whacking the birds as they swooped down.

"Stay back! Stay back!" he yelled, swinging the paddle wildly. Water droplets were flung in every direction—some of them hitting Sofia.

"Don't hurt them!" Sofia cried, grabbing his arm to stop him. She didn't want Cedric to get hurt, but she didn't want the swans to get hurt either, especially since they were just defending their uncle. She grabbed the oar and held it out away from them to stop some of the blows raining down on Cedric.

"We're sorry! We'll leave!" Sofia called out. "We'll leave right now, just let us!"

The swans stopped their assault for a brief moment, but continued to squawk angrily as they landed in the water and crowded around the boat.

"Get out of here!" one of them yelled, reaching over the side to peck Cedric's hand. He let out a yelp and raised the oar to smack the swan, but Sofia took it before he could and slipped it back through the ring.

"Let's just get out of here," she pleaded Cedric. His eyes narrowed into slits, but he grabbed the oars with white knuckles and rowed away. Sofia looked over his appearance and felt terrible. His usually neat hair was disheveled and he had quite a few tears in his robe from the pecking.

"Those demonic ducks," he muttered under his breath once they were far enough away. Sofia was tempted to mention that they were swans, not ducks, but didn't think it would help the situation any. It would be best to just move on to the next spot and hope nothing else went wrong.

* * *

><p><strong>References. So many references. :P<strong>

**A reply to Guest: Don't worry, there will be some affection from Cedric in the next chapter. :) Thanks for reading!**

**Thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. Have a great Halloween! ;)**


	10. Sparks Fly

_Chapter Nine – Sparks Fly_

She unfolded the map and looked at the next destination. A peaceful pond with a band playing. She smiled to herself when she heard the sweet sound of singing up ahead, accompanied by instruments. As they drew closer, she could make out the words.

_"__Now's your moment, floating in a blue lagoon. Boy, you better do it soon, no time will be better,"_ they sang, and Sofia smiled when she recognized the tune. They rounded a bend in the river and the band came into view.

A plain wooden boat was floating off to the side with a group of three men inside. They each held a different instrument, and wore such colorful clothes. She was delighted with the bold patterns and variety of colors. The singer in the band wore the flashiest clothes—a bright orange shirt with colorful diamond patterns and a pair of bright purple pants. Unlike the rest of the band members, he stood and shook a pair of maraca's as he sang—his dreadlocks swinging from side to side as he swayed along with the music.

_"__Sha-la-la-la-la-la, don't be scared, you got the mood prepared. Go on and kiss the girl,"_ he sang, looking intently at them. Cedric gave him once glance and let out an irritated sigh, dropping his gaze.

"I hate this song," he muttered under his breath as he pulled the oars through the water.

Sofia felt a frown tugging at her lips. If he hated the music playing then it obviously wouldn't work. She lifted her head and put her hand on the side of the boat, leaning slightly over the edge.

"Excuse me," she called out, and the band immediately stopped. "Do you perhaps know any other songs?" She made sure her voice was sweet so she didn't come across as rude.

The lead singer gave her a smile in return. "Certainly, Your Majesty."

He turned to his band members and began shaking his maracas to an upbeat tune. They caught on quickly and began playing along.

_"__How does she know that you love her? How do you show her you love her?"_

Sofia turned her gaze back to Cedric. "Is this song better?"

"It's tolerable," he replied, his face unreadable. Sofia wasn't encouraged by his answer, but she tried to remain optimistic. Tolerable was certainly better than his dislike for the other song. As they played on Sofia noticed that Cedric gradually turned his head towards the other boat, as if listening intently.

_"__Well, does he leave a little note to tell you you are on his mind?"_ At this line Cedric's hand paused and he looked down, as if deep in thought. Sofia smiled, thinking perhaps the plan was working; however, a moment later he looked up, as if broken out of some spell and began rowing again. Soon, the sound of singing and instruments faded until she could no longer hear it.

A few minutes later she could see the river emptying into Gooseberry Lake. She looked up at the sky to see the sun still fully above the hill. They were a bit early. Oh well, maybe they could make use of the book of poems Amber left in the boat. As soon as they reached the middle of the lake Cedric dropped the handle and laid down on the red cushion, pressing a hand against his forehead.

"Oh, thank goodness we're here!" he panted, looking exhausted. Sofia wondered how they would get back with him in this condition, and made up her mind that she would help him row back when the time came.

"Are you all right?" Sofia asked after a couple of minutes. He finally sat up and gave a nod.

"Yes, I'm fine," he replied, sitting up, though he still looked a bit faint. She leaned forward and looked all along the bottom before she spotted the book Amber had been talking about._ Love Poems_, was written on the front in gold lettering.

"We're a little early. We could read out loud while we're waiting," she suggested, holding the book out for him.

His nose crinkled when he glanced down at the title. "I really can't stand love poems, Sofia."

She could feel her shoulders sag as she drew her hand back and placed the book next to her. "Oh. Why is that?"

"They just…they sound so insincere. They all sound the same because they all use the same clichés over and over again."

Sofia glanced at the plush red carpeting as she thought about all the love poems she'd ever read. Her eyes widened when she realized he was right—they all did sound the same, in a way.

"Well, I suppose that's because love is a universal feeling," she replied with a smile.

He shrugged. "Perhaps, but that doesn't mean every poem has to sound the same. All I want is a little bit of originality, or at least a more straightforward way of saying it. Instead of all that pomp and show, they could just say the three letter phrase."

Sofia had to chuckle at that, but also felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment. She wondered what he would think if he knew everything she had done to gain his attention over the last few days—all the pomp and show she had organized, as he called it. "Okay, so no love poems."

Just when Sofia was ready to admit this had been a total disaster Cedric gave her a small smile. "But I can still remember some poems my mummy ready to me when I was a boy."

She immediately perked up. "Oh, I'd love to hear them."

"All right." He sat up straighter and cleared his throat.

_"__If life be time that here is lent, _

_And time on earth be cast away, _

_Whoso his time hath here misspent, _

_Hath hastened his own dying day…"_ he began.

By the time he was finished Sofia was clapping her hands in approval. "That was beautiful. Do you know any others?"

He gave her a smile, and Sofia thought to herself that maybe tonight wasn't a total disaster, even if it wasn't quite what Amber had planned. A sudden light caught Sofia's eyes, and her gaze slipped past Cedric to see the first of the lanterns being released from behind the hill. She let out a gasp of awe, causing him to turn around in his seat. He gazed at them with her as more and more lanterns were released into the sky, lightning up the lake with a soft yellow glow. It was more beautiful than Sofia could have imagined.

"Wow," she heard Cedric whisper, and her grin widened at his reaction. He turned and she felt a fluttering feeling in her stomach when he gave her a rare smile. As they gazed at each other his smile slowly faded into a serious expression, and he leaned forward. Sofia was only vaguely aware that a floating lantern had landed on the wooden pole behind Cedric.

"Sofia, earlier when you said—" he began, but suddenly the smell of something burning filled her nose, and she turned her eyes up to see the curved wooden end of the boat in flames, caused by the lantern.

"Cedric!" she cried, pointing at it. He jumped and then spun around in his seat, taking notice of the fire. He reached into his pocket and whipped out his wand. He waved his hand and opened his mouth to say a spell, but as the wand slipped his between his fingers as he flicked his wrist and landed with a plop in the water.

"Oh, Merlin's mushrooms!" he cried, hands flying to his face.

Sofia leaned over and cupped her hands, scooping up some water before throwing it on the flames. There was a loud hiss as the water touched the fire, but it did little good as the fire grew and spread. Sofia heard a crackling behind her and turned to see another lantern had landed on the other wooden end, and was quickly engulfing the boat in flames. Black smoke curled all around them and licked at the edges of the boat. Sofia brought one arm up to cover her mouth and nose as she leaned over and scooped up more water.

Cedric took her lead and leaned over the edge just as Sofia did. Suddenly the boat gave a lurch beneath them. She could only let out a short scream before the boat capsized and they tumbled into the cold water. She could only see darkness as the icy water swirled around her, shocking her senses and freezing her bones in place. Suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and dragged her to the surface, coughing and sputtering.

"You're all right," she heard Cedric say, and she turned to see him floating only inches away from her. His hair hung in wet strands of black and gray around his face, while concern shone in his eyes. She suddenly felt warmer than before, and she knew it had little to do with the arms wrapped around her. The once floating lanterns were coming back down, going out with a hiss as they landed on the water around them.

Sofia coughed and pushed the wet strands of brown hair away from her face. "It doesn't make sense. Fire doesn't spread that fast."

"It was the wood finisher," Cedric grumbled. "It's extremely flammable."

"Sofia? Cedric?" she heard Amber's voice call from the shore. Sofia reluctantly turned her eyes away from Cedric to see her sister standing on the bank, a servant with a lantern next to her. "What are you doing in the water?"

"Oh, the boat caught on fire," Sofia said, biting down on her lip. "And then we accidentally tipped it over."

Amber looked as determined as ever when she heard this. "Well, come on out before you catch a cold."

Cedric's hold on her tightened as he swam to shore. Amber pulled out a handkerchief from her fur coat and gave it to Sofia. "Here—to dry yourself with."

Sofia shook her head good naturedly at the small piece of cloth, but took it and began wiping the cold lake water from her face. "I had the coachman drive me here. You can ride back with me."

* * *

><p>Sofia sat on her bed, trying to dry her hair. After they arrived back at the castle Sofia had immediately been escorted to the bathing room, where a warm bath had been drawn for her. After that she had gone straight back to her room and changed into nice warm clothes, wondering if Cedric was all right. She supposed he was, since he had a bath in his tower, though she wasn't sure the water would be heated. Still, he must have a spell for that, or something.<p>

As Sofia pondered these things she heard her door creak open and turned to see Amber walk in, a book in her hand. Sofia almost wanted to groan. She admired her tenacity, but after all their failed attempts, it was becoming clear that nothing was working.

"I've got another plan," she announced as she walked over to Sofia's bed, sitting down on the edge.

"It's no use, Amber. Nothing we do works."

"That's why we have to keep trying."

Sofia let out a sigh, looking down at her bed sheets. "I'm a lost cause. Maybe I'm just not cut out for romance."

Amber waved a dismissive hand, catching Sofia's attention and making her look up. "Nonsense, any girl can be trained. We just have to keep trying until we find a method that works. Not all these tricks work the first time, and some only work on certain men…" Amber paused for dramatic effect. "But I have an idea of what will work on _any_ man. This will be guaranteed to get you a kiss."

"That's what you said about the spaghetti plan, and the boat plan," Sofia said, giving her a frown as she crossed her arms.

Amber waved her hand again. "But there's no way you can mess this up. It's foolproof."

She handed Sofia a thin paperbound book with the title _Twelve Steamy Nights_. The woman on the cover was dressed in a green dress with a red sash, while the man wore a pair of red breeches—but not much else. In the background was a grand, decorated Wassalia tree.

"Wassalia Day? But that was two months ago. I don't understand," she said, turning her gaze back to Amber.

She only gave Sofia a sly grin. "Oh, Sofia, you're too naïve." She gave her a pat on the head, then stood and walked over to the door. "I'll tell you everything tomorrow."

Sofia leaned back into her pillows and let out a sigh as the door closed behind Amber. Placing the book on her bedside table, she relaxed and placed both hands behind her head, staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly a white object appeared out of thin air above her, falling and bouncing off her forehead.

She let out a scream and jumped out of bed, batting the object away. Her feet stumbled back and she accidentally hit her back against the wall. Heart beating erratically, she peered at the projectile before realizing it was a crumpled up piece of paper. She quickly walked into her closet and grabbed a spare hanger. A crumpled up piece of paper wasn't something to be afraid of, but the fact that if appeared out of thin air was.

She crept up to the bed and carefully poked the paper with her hanger before deeming it safe to handle. Laying the metal hanger aside, she picked up the white sheet and smoothed it out. Inside, she was surprised to find a note written in Cedric's handwriting.

_"__Sofia,_

_I was just practicing a teleporting spell for small objects, and I thought I might send it to you since you've been on my mind. Well, you're usually on my mind. I mean, not that I think about you obsessively, but you do come to mind. I blame the fact that you pester me day and night. Anyway, just wanted to write and say I was thinking about you…and testing out a spell. But mostly testing out a spell. I'll just stop now._

_Sincerely, Cedric."_

Sofia closed her eyes and smiled, holding the wrinkled paper close to her chest. Those words he used—_"you've been on my mind"_—they sounded so familiar. Her mind wandered back to the song the band had been singing earlier, something about sending a note to tell a woman she was on your mind. Sofia wondered if maybe it had affected him that much, and her heart soared at the possibility. Maybe the night hadn't been a complete disaster after all. Still, she shouldn't assume too much…but if she was right, Cedric would reveal his feelings soon enough. Amber was right, she couldn't give up just yet. She just had to keep trying.

* * *

><p><strong>Ok, so there was <em>some<em> affection from Cedric in this chapter. (Not a lot, I know, but if you're looking for more, you'll love chapter twelve and thirteen)**

**The poem in this chapter is called **_Of The Loss Of Time_ **by John Hoskins, a poet from the late 1500's and early 1600's. ****Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! :) Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed!**


	11. Mistletoe

_Chapter Ten – Mistletoe_

After school the next day, Sofia went straight to her sister's room. She thought all night about what Amber might be planning. Whatever it was, she knew it couldn't have anything to do with Wassalia. After all, how could it when the holiday had already passed? However, when she opened the door and saw a few sprigs of mistletoe on Amber's desk, as if waiting there for her, she let out a sigh. She was wrong again. Typical. Amber hopped off her bed and tossed her book aside, walking over to the colorful berries.

"Isn't it just perfect? All you have to do is hang this above his door, then when he answers pretend to notice the mistletoe. He'll _have_ to kiss you!" Amber said, her face lit up with delight.

"But Amber, Wassalia was two months ago, and I…I don't think it's such a good idea." Sofia had to look away when she remembered what happened a couple Wassalia's ago under the mistletoe.

Amber crossed her arms. "You can't afford to be picky, Sofia. We only have two days left until Valentine's Day!"

"I know, but…" Sofia trailed off.

A moment later she felt a hand on her shoulder, and raised her gaze to meet Amber's. "What?"

Sofia took a deep breath and began to tell Amber something she had never told anyone before.

* * *

><p><em>Smoothing out the folds of her sparkling blue dress, Sofia walked into the ballroom. It was Enchancia's turn to host the annual Wassalia Winter Wonderland Ball. The room was decorated with garlands of holly wrapped around the columns, and green and red banners hanging on the walls. Fake icicles hung from the ceiling and a ten foot tall Wassalia tree stood in the middle of the ballroom—the star shaped ornament on top lighting up the entire room. The most impressive thing of all, though, was the illusion of snow falling from the ceiling—courtesy of Cedric.<em>

_Everything was so beautiful she didn't notice him walking up to her until he cleared his throat. She jumped, then let out a breath of relief when she saw him standing there, dressed in a red robe for a change._

_"__I was looking for you all day!" Sofia exclaimed, taking a step through the doorway._

_"__What for?"_

_"__I have a present for you!" she said as she reached into her pocket. Suddenly she felt someone bump into her from behind. Cedric's hand reached out to steady her as she stumbled forward._

_"__Oh, I'm sorry," Sofia said, turning around to see partygoers trying to get in._

_"__We should move away from the entrance," Cedric suggested. She grabbed his hand and led him out of the room, into an unoccupied doorway a little ways down the hall. They wouldn't be in the way of arriving guests or those moving about the room there._

_"__Oh, I made these for you," Sofia said, reaching into her pockets and pulling out a pair of purple knitted mittens. She plopped them onto his hands and he smiled._

_"__Thank you, Sofia. I…I wish I had a present for you," he said, giving her a guilty look._

_"__Oh, that's fine, you don't need to get me anything." When his expression didn't change she took a step closer. "Really, there isn't anything I want. Right now is enough."_

_His eyes widened slightly at that, and she felt a warm, pleasant feeling in her stomach when he took a step towards her, closing the gap. That day in his workshop a couple months ago came back to her—the one where he had taught her how to conjure a small rainstorm…the one where they had been standing so close. Sofia's eyes darted to his lips, just like that day, and still found herself wondering what they would feel like against hers._

_She tilted her head upward to get a better look at him and caught a flash of color. Turning her eyes skyward, she noticed a small twig of mistletoe hanging from the doorway, directly above them. She lowered her eyes and then closed them, lifting up onto her toes and closing the gap between their lips._

_She felt her breath hitch in her throat when she felt his warm lips against hers—a nice contrast to the cold air swirling around them. A low murmur escaped from her mouth as she leaned in closer—trying to fulfill the desire to be closer to him. The warmth suddenly left her lips, and her eyes flew open to see Cedric stumble back, eyes wide. She watched as he drew in a shaky breath, looking both startled and guilty._

_"__No, Sofia…this is…this is…"_

_"__What? What's wrong?" she asked._

_Cedric gestured between them. "_This_ is wrong, Sofia. You're only sixteen, and I'm thirty-three…it's not appropriate."_

_Heat crept up her cheeks and she suddenly felt stupid for having kissed him. What was she thinking? "It was just a mistletoe kiss," she lied, trying to save her pride and make the awkwardness disappear. She didn't want him to always look at her like he was now._

_"__What?" he asked, his expression changing to confusion._

_She pointed up at the mistletoe over their heads. "It didn't mean anything. You're supposed to kiss under the mistletoe, right?" That seemed to calm him down a bit._

_"__Oh, of course. I didn't see it there."_

_Sofia wrapped her arms around herself, feeling like she might fall apart at any moment. Tears pooled in her eyes and she blinked rapidly to make them go away. She looked away as she replied. "It's okay, we can just pretend it never happened."_

_When he gave a nod Sofia quickly excused herself and ran back inside, trying to lose herself in the party._

* * *

><p>"Wait, so you and Cedric <em>kissed<em> and you _never told me?"_ Amber exclaimed, gesturing wildly.

"I didn't see any reason to. We never talked about it again," Sofia said with a shrug, and glanced back down at the ground. "And I'm afraid that if I use mistletoe, it might remind him of that night, and…I don't know."

"That he'll reject you again?" Amber asked gently, and Sofia looked up again, giving a nod.

She wondered if she had just been deluding herself the past few days, believing that their plans would make him fall in love with her. Maybe it was foolish to believe he would change his mind. Thinking back, she even wondered if it was really her age that bothered him, or if he was just trying to think of an excuse that wouldn't hurt her feelings. Maybe he didn't want to hurt her by saying that he didn't have any feelings for her.

"If you're too afraid to try, then you'll definitely fail," Amber suggested, and when Sofia looked at her with surprise, she smiled. "That was something you told me once."

Sofia stepped forward and gave Amber a hug. "You're a really good sister, Amber."

"I know."

Sofia chuckled as she pulled back. "All right, I'm ready."

Amber picked up a sprig and handed it to Sofia. "Just remember—don't go in for the kiss, let him. A man always has to make the first move. That _might_ have been part of your problem two years ago. It's a good thing you lied and said you only kissed him because of the mistletoe."

Sofia gave a nod and walked over to the door, giving Amber a big smile before closing the door behind her. Climbing the stairs, she tried to prepare herself for whatever might happen. When she finally got to the top, she realized she didn't know how to hang the mistletoe above the door.

When she ran her fingers through her hair she suddenly remembered she had a couple of bobby pins in it. She pulled one out and walked over to the door, holding the mistletoe where she wanted it to hang. When she tried to press the pin through the twig and into the wooden frame, she found that she wasn't strong enough.

She let out a huff and looked down at her feet. A burst of inspiration suddenly hit her and she slipped her shoe off. Turning it around so the heel faced the wood, she reeled it back and then gave the bobby pin a good, hard hit with her shoe. The pin sunk into the wood, and after a few good hits, it was stable. It didn't go all the way it, but it was good enough to hold the sprig up there. She grinned up at her work. The door flew open to reveal a very annoyed Cedric. When he saw the shoe in her hand he raised an eyebrow.

"Were you hitting my door with your shoe?"

"No, I was. Uh…I got your letter last night."

At this he looked away uncomfortably. "Sorry about that. I accidentally sent that, that's why it was crumpled up." He cleared his throat, and Sofia couldn't help the sinking feeling in her heart at hearing the endearing letter she received was an accident. "Well, if that's all you came to say."

He started to close the door, and she began to panic. "Actually, I also came because…" Sofia looked at her shoe and saw a small hole where the bobby pin had punctured it. "I have a hole in my shoe."

He rolled his eyes. "So why did you come to me? Go to the Royal Shoe Maker…" He furrowed his eyebrows. "Wait, weren't you a shoemaker before you became a princess?"

"I thought you might have a spell," she said with a shrug.

"I don't…" He seemed to pause. "Wait, I might actually have a shoe repairing spell."

He walked over to a bookshelf and pulled a leather bound volume down. When he turned to look at her he looked surprised. "What, you're not going to come in? That's a first."

She had to get him back under the doorway with her. "Yep."

He waved her inside. "All right, come here. I've found a spell."

"No, you come over here."

Cedric gave her a tolerant look. "I don't have time to play games, Sofia. Valentine's Day is in two days and I'm behind on my work."

Sofia didn't want to make him angry, so she walked over and held out her shoe. He said a simple spell, tapped the shoe, and it instantly repaired itself. "Thank you."

"Shoo now, I'm very busy," he said once she had slipped her shoe back on.

"Will you walk me to the door?"

He raised an eyebrow. "It's _right there_!" he exclaimed, gesturing towards the wooden door only a few feet away. When she made no move to leave he let out an exasperated noise and put a hand on her back, walking her over to the door. In three steps they reached the doorway, but before he could shut the door she pointed upward.

"Look, it's mistletoe," Sofia said, trying to sound surprised.

He looked up in surprise. "Mistletoe?" Instead of leaning forward to kiss her, he reached up and yanked the plant down. "What's it doing here? Wassalia was two months ago."

With a shrug she tilted her head up, inviting him to lean down and kiss her. Cedric wasn't paying attention to her, he was inspecting the plant. Finally he turned away and Sofia felt her heart drop. Well, so much for Amber's 'foolproof' plan. He suddenly stopped.

"Oh, I almost forgot," he said as he turned around and walked back over to her.

Sofia closed her eyes and puckered her lips as Cedric leaned forward, but a moment later she felt a pair of lips peck her cheek. Her eyes flew open and she drew her lips back as she straightened up. Cedric turned around and walked over to the window and tossed the mistletoe outside. Sofia let out a sigh. What did she have to do to get him to kiss her? Maybe he really didn't feel the same way. Cedric walked back over to the door and gave a wave before closing the door, leaving her standing there.

* * *

><p><strong>The part where she gives him purple mittens was inspired by a short comic that I found on tumblr with younger Sofia and Cedric. As always, thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! :)<strong>


	12. Accusations

_Chapter Eleven – Accusations_

When she got back to Amber's room she sat up and shoved her magazine aside. "That was fast, did it work?"

"Well…sort of," Sofia said shrugging one shoulder. Amber's lips parted in confusion. "He gave me a kiss on the cheek. That's something, right?"

Amber rolled her eyes. "Oh, Sofia, kisses on the cheek mean nothing. Girls give each other a kiss on the cheek all the time." She crossed her arms and looked away. "I don't understand, we've tried falling, dangling, spaghetti, a romantic boat ride, and mistletoe! One of those should have worked by now!" She threw her hands up in exasperation. "I can't think of a single reason why they haven't worked…"

She suddenly stopped short, trailing off as her lips parted to form an 'O' shape. Amber's hand flew to her chest, like she had been struck, and a shocked look crossed her face. "Oh…my…_gosh!_ It all makes sense now!"

"What does?" Sofia asked, taking a step forward.

"Sofia, have you ever seen Cedric with a girl, or has he mentioned if he's ever courted a girl before?"

"No, why?"

She slowly turned to Sofia and lowered her voice. "Sofia, I hate to tell you this, but I think Cedric may…he may swing the other way, if you know what I mean."

Sofia tilted her head to the side, furrowing her eyebrows. "I don't understand."

"You know, he may bat for the other team," Amber continued, rolling her hands in a circular motion, her eyes imploring her to understand the riddles she was speaking. When the confused look stayed on Sofia's face Amber rolled her eyes. "Oh, for goodness sakes, Sofia, I think he's gay!"

Sofia gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "Cedric is _not_ gay!"

"How do you know?"

"Because…because…because he just isn't! I would know if he was!" Sofia said stubbornly.

"It's not like he would just come out and say it," Amber replied with a shrug.

Sofia thought back to when she was younger. "He can't be gay because he had a crush on Sasha before he found out it was Miss Nettle in disguise!"

Amber rolled her eyes. "How do you know he had a crush on her?" Amber challenged.

"Because he was smiling a lot and he said she was the most beautiful sorceress he ever met."

Even after all those years she could feel stirrings of jealousy in the pit of her stomach. He had been instantly smitten with her, and yet whenever Sofia tried to get his attention she always failed. What did Sasha have that Sofia didn't? Sure, she could do magic, but Sofia knew some magic too. Maybe not as much as a sorceress, but she was at the top of her Sorcery class at Royal Prep. She was just glad Sasha turned out to be a fake and that Cedric quickly got over her. However, Amber wasn't buying it.

"How can you remember that? It was ten years ago! Have you ever seen him with a girl, or even interested in one—besides Sasha, I mean?"

"Well, no, but that doesn't mean—"

"I say he's gay."

Sofia glared at Amber. "Just because we've never seen him with a girl doesn't mean he's gay!" Sofia shot back. "You can't just assume things like that, Amber."

"Of course not, which is why we're going to go and find out," Amber said with a shrug.

"How?"

"We go up to his workshop and observe him, then ask him questions to determine whether or not he's interested in women."

Sofia knew Amber wouldn't let it go until they found out for sure. She looked away and thought of questions she could ask him to determine which team he batted for, as Amber put it. Finally, she thought of some and nodded at Amber.

"Great." Amber walked over to her desk and picked up a clipboard, handing it over to Sofia. "Here, you'll need this. Just let me do the talking when we get up there."

When they got to the top of the stairs Amber retrieved the key from its hiding place and let them in. Cedric stood at his worktable, reading a spell book. He narrowed his eyes at her, but before he could say a word Amber held up a hand.

"Sofia has a school project about sorcerers. The first part of it requires her to study a sorcerer in his natural habitat, and she's picked you," Amber said.

"Lucky me," Cedric said sarcastically, closing the book.

Amber waved a hand at him. "Go on about your business, we'll just be sitting over there watching."

"All right, I was just about to take a tea break anyway," he said, standing up from his chair and walking over to a cabinet. Amber put a hand on Sofia's arm and pulled her over to the table she always sat on. Sofia hoisted herself up and Amber sat next to her, both of them watching as Cedric pulled a teacup and tea bag from the cupboard.

Amber leaned over and whispered to Sofia, "He's wearing pointy-toed shoes with heels, and look at that big yellow bow! And do you see how well-groomed his nails are? He's totally gay!"

"Just because he dresses nice and takes care of his nails doesn't mean anything!" Sofia whispered back.

"It's a good indicator," Amber whispered back, then turned her gaze to the vast library Cedric had. "Maybe looking at the books he reads will tell us more."

Amber jumped down to the ground and walked up the staircase to look at the books, with Sofia following closely. Amber scanned over the book titles on one shelf, while Sofia looked at another. She noticed most of them were spell books, or books on how to create perfect spells and potions.

"Hey, check this out!" Amber whispered sharply, and Sofia's head snapped up to see her sister jabbing an accusing finger at a few books. She walked over and read the titles, but didn't recognize any of them.

"I don't understand," Sofia whispered back, furrowing her eyebrows.

"These are romance novels about a vampire and his human love, and he's got the complete series—_Dusk, Full Moon, Occultation,_ and _Breaking Daylight_! No man would be caught dead reading just one of these books, much less own the entire series!"

"Maybe he's just really interested in vampires," Sofia suggested with a shrug.

Amber rolled her eyes. "Sofia, all the signs point to one thing—"

Cedric suddenly stopped what he was doing and glanced up at them. "What are you two whispering about?"

"Oh, nothing important," Sofia said, giving him an innocent smile. He gave them a suspicious look for a second or two then turned back around and picked up the cup and bag, bringing both of them over to his desk. He grabbed his wand and said a spell, making a teapot appear.

"The second part of the assignment is to interview you," Amber piped up as they walked back down the stairs, giving Sofia a nudge.

"Fine," he said as he poured hot water into the cup, then plopped the teabag in.

Sofia took a step towards him, the clipboard clutched tightly in her hands. "Um, so…have you ever courted a girl?"

Cedric leaned back and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you need to know that for your assignment?"

"She has to study the social life of a sorcerer," Amber answered smoothly before Sofia could respond.

Cedric let out a sigh. "No, I haven't."

Sofia pretended to write down his answer.

"Have you ever _kissed_ a girl? Besides that one time two years ago, I mean," Sofia asked.

Cedric let out a huff and crossed his arms. "I don't see why they need to know the personal details of my life."

"Just answer the question," Amber said.

"Please?" Sofia added with a small smile.

Cedric rolled his eyes. "No, I have never kissed any girl besides you."

Sofia couldn't help the smile blooming across his face at his answer, and felt a pleasant feeling deep within her knowing that she was his first kiss, just as he was hers. Still, she was no closer to knowing what she and Amber came here to learn. Maybe she should ask what feature he noticed first in a girl, then she would know for sure that he noticed girls and took an interest in them.

"And what's the first thing you notice about a girl?"

Cedric looked away in thought. "Uh, her gender, I guess?"

He sounded unsure. She could just straight up ask him about it, but it would be really awkward. Still, she had to know.

"So, Cedric, do you, um…do you…bat for the other team?" Sofia asked, feeling her cheeks heat up in embarrassment at the personal question.

Cedric furrowed his eyebrows as he pulled the teabag out of the cup. "I don't play baseball, if that's what you're asking."

"No, I mean…well…" Sofia tried to think of a polite way to phrase it.

She heard Amber let out a sigh behind her. "Are you gay?"

Cedric, who had just taken a sip of her tea, did a spit take, splashing the hot tea all over Wormwood, who was perched nearby. He let out an angry squawk, flapping his wings as he yelled at Cedric.

_"__What?!"_ Cedric cried, wiping his mouth with a sleeve, then gave Wormwood an apologetic look. "Sorry, Wormy."

Sofia turned around to see Amber roll her eyes. "You know—gay? Are you attracted to other men—?"

"I know what the word means!" Cedric snapped, glaring at her. "And no, I'm not!"

Sofia let out a breath of relief and smiled. She still had a chance then. However, Amber didn't look so convinced.

"You could tell us if you were, and we wouldn't tell anyone," Amber said.

The door to his workshop opened just as Cedric yelled, _"I'm not gay!"_

All three occupants turned to see Baileywick standing in the doorway, his eyes wide. "I can see I've…uh, interrupted a private discussion. I'll just…leave this right here," he said as he placed a piece of parchment on a table just inside the room. With a nod he quickly closed the door behind him. Cedric let out an exasperated moan, leaning over and hitting his forehead on the desk.

A moment later he raised it and glared at both the girls. "You see what you've done? Now everyone will be spreading rumors about me!"

"Oh, Baileywick won't say anything. He's very discreet," Amber said with a dismissive sweep of her hand. Then she walked over to Sofia and whispered in her ear, "He's telling the truth."

Sofia smiled, glad that Amber was convinced, however when she looked over at her she saw a mischievous glint in her eyes. She was planning something, and Sofia wasn't so sure she wanted to know what it was.

"I think you're lying," Amber said, walking over to Cedric and crossing her arms.

"I don't care what you think!" he snapped back.

"I want you to prove you're not gay," she continued on, ignoring his comment.

"And how would I prove a thing like that?"

"Simple." Amber grinned as she pointed at her. "Kiss Sofia."

Cedric's irritated look turned into one of shock, and so did Sofia's. He looked over at her, and as soon as their eyes met she dropped her gaze, heat creeping across her face. A moment later she looked back up to see him standing. She felt her insides twist. Yes, she wanted a kiss, but not like this. If he did give her one, she wanted it to be because he _wanted_ to do it, not because he wanted to prove something or because he _had_ to. But she couldn't say that she didn't want him to kiss her because then he would get discouraged if he did happen to have feelings for her. She'd never get a kiss then. And she couldn't say she only wanted him to kiss her if _he_ wanted to, because then she'd be admitting her feelings for him. That would be breaking Amber's biggest rule in the whole charade.

Cedric turned his gaze over to Amber. "I would never kiss a girl against her will."

Amber waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, Sofia doesn't mind, do you?"

"He doesn't need to kiss me, I believe him."

Amber's mouth dropped open a little, clearly not expecting that answer, but Sofia only cared about Cedric's reaction. When she looked over at him he gave her a smile that made the butterflies within her stir up.

"We're leaving now," Amber said, marching over to Sofia and grabbing her arm. She dragged her all the way back to her room, then spun around to glare at her once she had closed the door. "What was that back there? I could have gotten you a kiss!"

"What good is a kiss if he's only doing it to prove something?"

"It doesn't matter. It's a kiss and it'll get him to notice you! Once he does he'll fall madly in love."

Sofia crossed her arms. "If that was true, then he would have fallen in love with me two years ago."

"No, because _you_ made the first move then. This time, it would have been _him_ initiating the kiss."

"I draw the line at coercing him into kissing me," Sofia said stubbornly, and this time she held Amber's intense gaze. Finally, her older sister let out a sigh.

"Fine," she said, waving a dismissive hand in surrender. "Have it your way. We'll just have to keep trying. It's back to the books again."

* * *

><p><strong>More references in this one ;)<strong>

**Thanks to everyone who followed, favorite, and reviewed! Your support means a lot! :)**

**To answer a guest review: I get the ideas for some of these these from books, but mostly cheesy movie clichés. :)**


	13. A Sky Full Of Stars

_Chapter Twelve – A Sky Full Of Stars_

"Stargazing?" Sofia questioned as she sat on Amber's bed, the book resting in between them. "I don't see how that will get Cedric to notice me."

Amber rolled her eyes. "Think about it, Sofia—it's nighttime, there's thousands of beautiful, twinkling stars above you, and best of all, you're all alone with him. It's the perfect setting for romance!"

"Well, when you put it like that…" Sofia relented. Amber gave her a grin and picked up the book, flipping to a section in the middle.

"If you don't believe me, just listen to this." Amber began to read a passage from the book. When she was finished, Sofia had to agree with her—stargazing was a good setup for romance, but would she be able to carry it out?

"I don't know if I can do it. Every time I try to get his attention I end up hurting someone or making a giant mess."

Amber waved a hand and let out a sniff. "There's no way you can mess this up, Sofia. Around one or two in the morning go to his room, lead him up to the roof, and gaze at the stars together. It's as simple as that."

"One or two in the _morning_?" Sofia repeated, her eyes growing wide.

"Of course, that's the best time to look at the stars."

"What if he won't get up?"

Amber gave me a sly grin. "Then use your womanly charm and wiles to _make_ him get up and follow you to the roof."

Sofia blushed at the suggestion and looked down at the bed sheets. "I just hope this works."

Amber reached forward and gave Sofia's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "If you do everything right, it will."

* * *

><p>Sofia sat at her vanity table with just a small lantern to cast light around the room. Turning around to make sure the nightgown was appropriate, she gave a nod and picked up the lantern. Normally she wore a thin nightshirt that ended an inch above her knees, but she knew that if she was planning on spending her night outside of her bedroom, she needed something more appropriate. She donned her plainest gown so it looked like a nightdress and made sure her corset was laced properly, though she did loosen it quite a bit.<p>

She quietly opened her door and slipped out of the room, eyes nervously darting around to make sure there was nobody lurking in the shadows or roaming around the castle halls at night. She knew she'd be in big trouble if anyone caught her outside her room at this time of night—especially since she had school tomorrow!

When she finally made it to the tower steps she let out a sigh and quickly climbed the limestone. Without shoes the cold stone stung her feet, making her hurry up the stairs. She retrieved the hidden key from the gargoyle claw and unlocked the door, noticing how dark it was inside his workshop.

She stepped inside and held her lantern out, casting light around the room. Wormwood sat sleeping on his perch, head tucked beneath his wing. Good, she wasn't sure how the raven would react to her sneaking into his master's workshop in the dead of night. She quietly made her way down the stairs and stopped to smile at the sight before her when she reached the bottom. Cedric lay on his bed, the covers pulled up to his chest as he snored slightly. She set the lantern down on a nearby table and walked over to him.

She reached out and poked his shoulder with one finger. "Cedric?"

When he didn't respond she poked him again. She frowned when he didn't stir. With a new determination, she began poking him until he let out a groan and lazily pulled the covers over his head.

"Five more minutes, mummy," he grumbled from underneath the blankets.

Sofia laughed and poked him once more. When he finally pulled the cover away and cracked one eye open to see a dark figure standing there, he let out a yell. Cedric jumped a foot, nearly falling out of bed in the process. She figured he must have realized it was her and not an assassin or something equally as bad, because he calmed down and rubbed a hand over his face.

"What are you doing here? What time is it?" he groaned, still half-asleep.

"It's about one in the morning."

Cedric muttered something unintelligible as he rolled onto his side so that he was facing her. "Is the castle on fire?"

"No."

"Did someone die?"

"Not that I know of."

"Then _go away_!" he snapped, yanking the pillow out from under him and pulling it over his head. "I'm trying to sleep."

"Don't you even want to know why I'm here?"

"No," came his muffled reply.

"I want you to come up to the roof and look at the stars with me," she answered anyway.

He pulled one corner of the pillow up so he could gaze up at her in disbelief. "You woke _me_ up because _you_ wanted to see the stars?" She smiled and gave a nod, glad that he understood. He simply let out a groan and pulled the pillow back down over his head. "You're insane."

"Yep, now come on, let's go."

"Go back to bed, princess. I have a lot of work to do tomorrow, and you have school."

"But I want to go and look at the stars."

"Then go by yourself."

"But I…" she paused briefly to think up an excuse. "I'm scared to go by myself."

Cedric let out an exasperated noise as he tossed the pillow aside. "You're eighteen years old, not eight—you can go by yourself!" He made a shooing motion towards the door. "Leave."

Disappointed, Sofia slowly made her way over to her lantern. She paused and looked back to Cedric, watching as he turned onto his back, folding his hands across his stomach. Sofia stopped completely and tightened her jaw. She didn't come all this way just to give up so easily. Amber said that if Cedric refused to get up she should use her womanly charm and wiles, but what exactly did that mean? Sofia thought back to the stories Amber had been reading her. Sometimes the women in the story wanted something the hero refused to do, so they had to persuade the hero to do what they requested. Sofia remembered one woman who sat on the hero's lap whenever she wanted something, and he quickly agreed after that. With a nod, Sofia decided to try that tactic.

She walked over to Cedric and climbed into his bed. His eyes snapped open and he let out an 'oof!' as she sat down on his stomach, pinning his arms beneath her. Struggling to free his arms, he wiggled his whole body while she smiled in satisfaction.

"I can't…breath!" he huffed, his face growing red. "Get…_off_ me!"

After a moment she hopped off and stood in front of him. He gasped, drawing in a deep breath. "Will you come with me now?"

"No!" he snapped, sending her a glare. "What do you think you were doing?"

"I was persuading you." She said, folding her arms across her chest. That should have worked, or at least, it always did in the book. Maybe she should try it again. She climbed back into his bed and was about to sit on him when he grabbed her by the shoulders and gently pushed her away.

"Stop it!" he exclaimed.

"Come up and see the stars with me or I'll sit on you again," she said.

"If you sit on me I'll turn you into a newt!" Sofia crossed her arms, giving him a pout. "Why me? Why march all the way up here and ask me to come and see the stars with you? Surely Amber or James would have went with you if you asked them."

Sofia wasn't quite sure what to say. Amber was very insistent that she not admit her true feelings for him until she was sure he had fallen for her, but she was getting tired of lying to everyone, especially him. She decided honestly would be best this time.

"Because I wanted it to be you," she whispered. He stared into her eyes for a few moments before finally letting out a sigh.

"All right, _fine_, I'll come, but only for a few minutes. I have a lot to do tomorrow."

She quickly ran over to her lantern, grabbing the handle. He rolled out of bed and picked up his purple robe from the chair he had thrown it across, slipping it on. Sofia excitedly bounded over, grabbing his arms and pulling him all the way to the top floor of the castle. He stumbled a couple times, still half-asleep, but when they finally made it to the top he couldn't help but smile. However, Sofia could only stare at the sky in disbelief and disappointment.

"Oh well, looks like we can't look at the stars tonight," Cedric said, gesturing at the overcast sky, completely covered with dark, gray clouds that blocked out any stars. "I'm going back to bed."

"But…" Sofia was at a loss for words. Her plans were ruined…again! Sofia hung her head and sniffed. At that sound Cedric turned towards her and saw her downcast face. She heard him let out a sigh and looked up to see him wearing an expression that was a mix of resignation and weariness.

"Did you really want to see the stars that badly?" he asked, and when Sofia nodded he sighed.

"_Defluo!_" he muttered, pointing his wand at the sky. A burst of light shot from the wand, and a moment later the clouds rolled away, revealing an inky black sky with stars dotting it. Sofia grinned and clapped her hands.

"Thank you!"

He gave a shrug as she walked over to the middle of the rooftop and laid down on the ground, hands resting behind her head. She smiled when he joined her a moment later.

"Do you know any constellations?" he asked.

"Um…well, I think that group of stars over there is Pegasus," she replied, pointing up at the sky. She turned her head to see a smile cross Cedric's lips.

"Pegasus is a summer constellation."

"Do you know constellations?"

"Only that one."

Sofia bit down on her lip. Now what? "So…are you excited for Valentine's Day?"

He shrugged. "It's hard to be excited when I have so much to do to prepare for it. Besides, I've never really been fond of the holiday."

Sofia tilted her head slightly to the side. "Why?"

"It's a nice enough holiday if you have someone special, but what if you're all alone?"

"You mean you've never had a Valentine…ever?"

"In case you haven't noticed, women aren't exactly flocking to my door."

Sofia was actually glad women weren't flocking to his door; however, she had to admit that she didn't understand why women _weren't_ trying to get his attention. "I can't understand why. You're amazing, Cedric. You're kind, funny, smart, and _so_ good at magic. I wish you could see what I do."

He was silent for a few moments, just staring at her like he was trying to figure out a puzzle. Finally he gave a nod. "I think I'm starting to."

Sofia relaxed. So far, so good. Maybe this plan would actually work. Even though everything was going well, Sofia was uncomfortable. The stone beneath her was cold, and it was seeping through her dress. She realized that in her excitement she forgot that it would be cold outside. A sudden chill shook her and she shivered, causing Cedric to look over at her.

He stood and Sofia wondered if he was going back inside. She sat up and was about to ask him to stay when slipped off his robe. Sitting back down, he wrapped it around her shoulders.

"The things I do…" she thought she heard him mumble.

She poked her arms through the sleeves and hugged the soft fabric tighter. Her hands bunched up the fabric of the collar and brought it up to her face, breathing in the scent. He always managed to smell so good. Sofia briefly wondered if there was a potion that could bewitch a person by smell alone, because she definitely found his scent intoxicating. It was the potent smell of sandalwood, mixed with herbs and other ingredients he used in his potions. All the scents mixed together to create a unique yet familiar aroma. When she turned her attention back to Cedric he was staring at her.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! And hope all my American readers enjoyed Thanksgiving yesterday! :)<strong>

**Thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! :)**


	14. Shooting Star

_Chapter Thirteen – Shooting Star_

"What?" she asked with a smile, unclutching the fabric.

"Why did you really want to come up here? You don't know any constellations or stars and ever since we sat down you've been doing everything _but_ looking up at the stars. What's the real reason you dragged me up here?"

Sofia looked away, biting down lightly on her lip. She could tell him everything right now—say that all this had been an attempt to get him to notice her and fall in love…but the fear that it might scare him away still haunted her like a ghost. Amber was older and wiser, so maybe she was right. Maybe confessing her feelings would only push him away. She certainly didn't want to do that, but she knew that a relationship built on lies would never last. If they got together would it be okay to tell him then?

"I…well, I…" Sofia was torn between wanting to be honest with him, and wanting to believe Amber was right. "I can't tell you."

She was afraid what he would say next, but he leaned forward and smiled. "Sofia, you can tell me anything."

A sudden flash of light across the sky distracted her, and she turned just in time to catch a shooting star disappear below the horizon.

"A shooting star!" she exclaimed, desperate to change the subject. "Quick, make a wish!"

She closed her eyes, wishing that Cedric would kiss her. After a moment or two she opened her eyes and turned to see Cedric staring at her.

"What did you wish for?" he asked.

"If I tell you it won't come true. But I promise to tell you if it _does_ come true," she replied. "Did you make a wish?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"There isn't anything I wanted. Right now is enough," he said, leaning forward slightly. Sofia felt her heart leap to her chest, remembering those exact words from two years ago. He must replay that night in his mind if he could still recall exactly what she said…he must think about it much as she did.

Her thoughts became scattered—distracted by how close they were. Did he even notice? They were mere inches apart and Sofia knew that if she just leaned forward their lips would be touching. Her heart started to beat faster. She could feel her eyelids closing as she inched forward, unsure about what his reaction would be. Amber would absolutely disapprove of making the first move, but she didn't care about anything else right now. All thought processes in her brain had shut down and what was left only focused on what was happening right now.

When she felt his breath fanning over her lips, a rush of desire swept over her—a breathless sort of feeling that she found strangely pleasant. She felt energized and calm, dazed and alert—all at once. It was like a cauldron of liquid fire had been poured into her stomach and was burning her up from the inside out. The last thing she saw before closing her eyes was his slightly parted mouth and half-lidded eyes.

Suddenly there was the sound of something hitting the stone roof. Sofia's eyes snapped open and she saw Cedric turn his head towards the sound. Her eyes followed his gaze to the shadows. There was another sound—this time louder. Sofia jumped up, reaching up with one hand to clutch her amulet. Cedric jumped up as well, putting a hand out to push Sofia behind him as he pointed his wand at the direction the sound had come from.

"Who's there?" he called out. Suddenly a blur jumped out from the shadows. Sofia let out a scream before realizing that she knew the figure crouched in front of them.

"Gnarly?" A smaller figure stepped out of the shadows, and Sofia smiled at the sight of her friends. "Teeni!"

"Sorry to scare you," Gnarly said. "We just wanted to come up and see the stars."

She ran out from behind Cedric and over to her friends, giving them both a hug. "What are you guys doing up here?"

Gnarly pointed to the sky. "We saw the clouds go away and wanted to come up here and look at the stars." Gnarly looked past Sofia at Cedric. She turned around and saw him staring uneasily at the trolls.

"Don't worry, Cedric. They're my friends," she told him.

"Do you mind if we join you?" Teeni asked.

Sofia didn't really want them here right now. She could still feel that burning fire deep down in the pit of her stomach. Would Cedric have kissed her if they hadn't shown up? She was a bit disappointed that she'd never know, but she knew saying so would be rude. They were her friends and she didn't want to make them feel like nuisances.

"Of course not. Come and sit next to me," Sofia said, sitting down and patting the spot next to her. Teeni walked over and sat down before turning her face up to the stars.

She heard Cedric let out a small sigh and when she turned her gaze to him she saw him slipping his wand back in his pocket. "Well I'm going back to bed. I said I'd spend a few minutes up here and I have. You can stay here with your friends or I can escort you back to your bedroom."

Sofia wasn't sure whether leaving her friends would be considered rude or not, but Cedric was offering to walk her back to her room. If she went with him she'd have an opportunity to be alone with him. Maybe he'd give her a kiss then. She nodded and he extended a hand, helping her up.

"It was nice seeing you again, but I have school tomorrow, so I should be getting back to bed," she told her friends.

Gnarly gave her a smile. "No problem. See you some other time."

Sofia gave a nod before following Cedric down the stairs. The whole way to her room he was silent, and she wondered what he was thinking. Finally, they reached her door and she turned to him. She slipped his robe off and handed it back to him.

"Thanks you…for everything," she said, giving him a smile. A normal smile, this time. He returned it as he pulled his robe back on.

"No problem. Goodnight, Sofia."

She took a step closer, hoping he would lean down and give her a kiss, but he only turned and walked away. She felt her shoulders slump. It must have been her imagination earlier, because if he wanted to kiss her, that would have been the perfect time. Now what? Sofia sighed. Well, she still had school tomorrow, she should get to bed. With one last glance at his retreating figure, she opened her bedroom door and stepped inside.

* * *

><p>Sofia was awoken by the creaking of her bedroom door. She sat up and rubbed her eyes to see Amber walking over to her. Was it time to get up already? Her whole body still felt like it was asleep.<p>

"So, did it work? Did he ask you to court him? Did you get a kiss?" she asked, sitting down on the edge of Sofia's bed.

"No," Sofia said as she yawned. "The trolls interrupted us. I think he…well, he might have kissed me if they hadn't shown up. I don't know."

Amber smiled at that. "Well, it's a start. Some men take longer than others to fall in love. You just have to keep trying. I'll look through my romance novels while you're at school."

Sofia let out a groan and covered her face with her pillow. "Don't remind me about school. I'm so tired I'll probably fall asleep through my first three classes."

"Say no more," she thought she heard Amber say. Sofia removed the pillow and raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"I'll just tell mom and dad that you feel sick."

Sofia frowned. "Amber, I don't like all this lying."

Amber waved a hand. "Oh, its fine, Sofia. Remember that time I forgot to write my report on the rainbow toad?" When Sofia nodded Amber continued. "Well, I told dad that I was sick and turned it in the next day."

Sofia knew it was wrong, but…well, she was _so_ tired, and missing one day wouldn't hurt, right? She was getting A's in all her classes, so she could afford to skip one day. With a nod, she gave Amber permission.

There was a knock on the door, and both Sofia and Amber turned at the sound. A moment later Baileywick strolled through the door.

"Princess, your parents asked me to check up on you. Breakfast started five minutes ago, and the royal carriage leaves in twenty minutes."

Before Sofia could respond, Amber replied, "Sofia is feeling sick and won't be attending school today. She needs the day to rest."

"Of course, Your Highness. I will inform the King and Queen and have a meal brought up for you," Baileywick replied. With a bow he left the room, closing the door behind him.

Amber turned to face Sofia with a smile. "This gives us time to plan your next move. I'll bring you lunch around noon and then we can discuss what to do."

Sofia gave a nod in agreement before snuggling into her pillow and closing her eyes. The door closed, and it felt like she had only been asleep for a minute when she heard a voice call out, "Wake-y, wake-y, princess!"

She groaned and rolled over in bed, opening her eyes to see Clover sitting on one of her pillows. Robin and Mia swooped down, landing on her bedpost.

"What is it?" she asked.

"We were waiting for you to bring us our breakfast, so when you didn't show up we got worried," Robin explained.

"Yeah. Are you all right?" Mia chirped.

Sofia smiled at her friends concern. "I'm fine, just a bit tired. I'm sorry I wasn't there to feed you, but Baileywick said he'd send up a meal. You can have it when it comes, I'm not hungry."

"Why are you tired?" Clover asked, hopping closer.

Sofia stifled a yawn before sitting up in bed. "I stayed up late last night with Cedric. We went up to the roof to watch the stars together."

Clover's smile widened, while Mia and Robin tweeted excitedly. "So you two are courting now?" He turned to both birds. "I told you our plan would work."

Sofia's smiled faded. "We're not together…yet. The falling plan didn't work, so Amber and I have been trying a few different things. I was hoping he would give me a kiss last night, but it didn't work."

"Why don't you just make him a Valentine telling him how you feel?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, Valentine's Day is tomorrow, it would be perfect!" Mia said, flapping her wings in excitement.

"That's what I was going to do, but Amber told me it would scare him away if I told him how I feel. She told me that I have to get him to confess his love for me first."

Clover scoffed. "And what does she know? Is she courting anyone?"

Sofia shook her head. "Well, no, but—"

"Then there's your answer. You should just tell him how you feel."

It sounded logical, but then again, so did Amber's opposing argument. Who was she supposed to believe? When Sofia recalled how each attempt had failed, she found that she agreed with her animal friends. She gave them a smile and nodded.

"You guys are right. I'll make him a Valentine telling him how I feel."

There was a knock on her door, and Sofia motioned for her friends to hide under the bed. She called out for the person to come in, and a servant carrying a plate piled with food opened the door. Once she was gone Sofia put the plate on her nightstand and let her friends help themselves. Sofia, who was feeling energized by her latest plan, tossed the sheets aside and walked over to her desk. She pulled out some colored paper and got straight to work on the perfect Valentine.

* * *

><p><strong>You guys didn't think I'd let her get off that easily, did you? Lol.<strong>

**Like always, thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! Hope you enjoyed the update! :)**


	15. Conjuring A Storm

_Chapter Fourteen – Conjuring A Storm_

Sofia was awoken by someone shaking her shoulder. She batted the hand away and mumbled that she needed more sleep. It took an hour to make Cedric's Valentine—five minutes to cut out a heart shape from the colored paper, ten minutes to glue on a lace frill and add some glitter, and then forty-five minutes to figure out what exactly she wanted to say. Finally, she had picked up her quill, dipped it in the ink pot and wrote from her heart.

"Sofia, wake up! I have the perfect plan!" she heard Amber's excited voice, and then felt another shake on her shoulder. Sofia reluctantly rubbed her eyes and sat up.

"What?"

Amber dumped a pile of books onto Sofia's bed. The books tumbling onto her legs jolted her awake and chased any lethargy away. She looked down at them and counted a total of twelve books. Amber climbed onto the bed and opened them all to a bookmarked page, then turned them around to face Sofia.

"Do you know what all these pictures have in common?" Amber asked; excitement lit up her face.

As Sofia scanned over the pictures she noticed all of them involve couples kissing during a rainstorm. "Kissing in the rain?"

"Exactly! I don't know how I missed it before! It's only the most romantic way to kiss. You'll be sure to get one this time."

Sofia closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then broke the news to Amber. "I appreciate everything you've done to help me, but I can't do this anymore—"

"Oh, you can't give up now, Sofia!" Amber interrupted, reaching forward to grab her hands. "Trust me, it will work this time."

"Amber," Sofia said with a little more force, "I'm not giving up. I've decided to just give him a Valentine telling him about my feelings."

"But Sofia, that will ruin any chance you two have of being together!" Amber cried. "Don't you remember what I said? Whenever a woman confesses her feelings for a man in a romance novel, it always ends in disaster! You have to let him confess his love for you first."

"But life isn't like a romance novel!" Sofia argued, gently pulling her hands away.

Amber frowned. "Of course it is! Don't you remember how our parents met? Mom was a commoner and when she met dad it was love at first sight. It's straight out of a storybook! And did mom confess her love for dad first?"

"No," Sofia admitted.

"And do you remember all those famous princesses? Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, Rapunzel…the list goes on and on. They all waited for the man to confess his love, and what happened to them?"

"They all lived happily ever after," Sofia admitted. Suddenly, she was unsure. If it worked for all the princesses, then that must be the only way to get Cedric to fall in love with her. Then again, her plans have always ended in disaster. "But everything I've tried has failed!"

"Only because you haven't been trying hard enough! You have to put your all into it."

Sofia was about to protest that she _had_ been putting her all into it, but then she really thought about it. Maybe she had given up too easily. If she really pursued it maybe it would finally work. She had to stop being scared that it wouldn't work and just trust Amber.

"You're so close, Sofia. Do you really want to ruin it all?" Amber asked when Sofia didn't respond.

Sofia drew in a deep breath, realizing that Amber was right. "No."

Amber reached forward and gave Sofia's hand a pat. "Good girl, now pay attention: all these scenes end in kisses, but they all begin with an intense argument."

"An argument?" Sofia questioned, knitting her brows together.

"Of course," Amber said with a wave of her hand. "In that intense and passionate state they realize how they feel about each other and share a heated kiss. It works like a charm. Here, listen…"

Amber picked up one book titled _The Notepad_ and began reading from it. Once Amber was done reading the kiss scene from each novel, Sofia's head was swimming with information. The arguments were very intense, and most of what those couples said to each other was really mean. She hated to think that she would have to hurt Cedric like that. Whenever he was hurting, Sofia was hurting. If he was sad, she always put everything aside to go and cheer him up.

"Amber, I…I don't want to hurt his feelings. What if I say something really mean and he never forgives me?"

"Don't worry, as soon as passion sweeps over him and he kisses you, everything you said will be forgotten. It won't matter anymore."

"Are you sure?" Sofia asked.

"Of course, when have I ever been wrong? Now listen, tomorrow is Valentine's Day, so you have to do it today."

Sofia turned and glanced out her window, seeing only a bright blue sky dotted with white clouds. "But it's sunny outside."

Amber tapped her chin and looked away in thought. After a moment her eyes lit up and she turned her gaze to Sofia. "Do you remember a couple years ago when we had to create a small rainstorm for sorcery class?" Sofia thought back to the difficult test and nodded. "You were the only one who was able to do it, so you can do it again, just make it bigger."

"Amber, it's a complicated spell. The only reason I was able to do it was because Cedric helped me."

"If you did it once, you can do it again. Just remember why we're doing this."

Sofia let out a sigh. "I could try, but even if I was able to do it, I can't leave my room. I'm supposed to be sick, remember? If they see me out casting spells and kissing in the rain they'll know I'm not sick."

Amber waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, don't worry about that. When it rains everybody comes inside, so nobody will see you."

"Well how am I going to get Cedric to come out into the rain with me? He'd never agree to that."

"Yes, you're right," Amber mumbled, then snapped her fingers. "Get him to come with you to the gardens—" Sofia started to object, but Amber raised a hand. "Don't worry, I'll make sure it's empty. Anyway, get him to follow you out there, and then I'll come and say I need to speak with you immediately. We'll go somewhere secluded where you can cast the spell. Then run back and start arguing with him!"

"About what?"

"I don't know, be creative. Just make something up. If all else fails, just start yelling about random things. He'll get caught up in the heat of the moment and won't even notice if what you're saying doesn't make any sense. It happens all the time in romance novels."

Amber had Sofia wait inside her room while she stepped outside to make sure the coast was clear. They snuck through the hallways, with Amber occasionally motioning for Sofia to duck behind a column or some other convenient hiding spot when a servant passed by. Finally, they made it to the base of Cedric's tower stairs, and Amber told Sofia to stall for as long as possible while she asked Baileywick to clear out the gardens so Amber could pick blueberries in peace, or at least that was their excuse. She also told Sofia to take the back stairs when they walked out to the gardens.

"Good luck," Amber said before leaving Sofia at the foot of the stairs.

Sofia quickly walked up the steps and knocked on his door, but after a few moments of silence she frowned. He couldn't possibly be out, could he? She knew there was still so much he had to finish by Valentine's Day. Well, if he was gone he'd probably be back shortly, so she might as well wait inside for him.

Pushing the door open, she stepped inside and instantly saw why he hadn't answered. Cedric was slumped over his workstation, fast asleep. His wand had slipped from his hand, and a spell book lay open under his head. Sofia laughed and walked over to him, gently shaking his shoulder.

"Cedric?" He suddenly jolted awake, making Sofia take a step back.

"I'm awake!" he cried, before turning his gaze and catching sight of her. With a sigh he slumped in his chair and ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Oh, it's you."

"Well you sure sound happy to see me," Sofia replied with a small frown.

"I didn't mean it like that, Sofia," he said, and then let out a yawn. "No more late night stargazing, I still have so much work to do for tomorrow."

When Sofia saw how tired and overworked he was, she saw how she could use this opportunity. "Well you certainly won't get any work done if you keep pushing yourself. You should take a short break—get some fresh air. Hey, why don't you join me in a walk around the gardens?"

"I suppose I do need a small break, but not for long," he said as he stood and stretched.

A few minutes later they were strolling through the gardens, looking at all the various flowers. Sofia tried to admire all the different smells and pretty colors, but she could feel her body buzzing. Her eyes kept darting around, wondering where Amber was. She said she would come as soon as she saw them walking down the path, so where was she?

"Sofia?" Cedric's voice called Sofia back to the present and she turned to see him gazing at her.

"Yes?"

"I asked you why you aren't in school today," he repeated.

"Oh, well I was too tired to go, and I figured missing one day wouldn't hurt," she said. She knew that lying to him would be useless, since she obviously wasn't sick. Besides, she was getting tired of lying to him all the time. What kind of friend was she?

"Saint Sofia skipped school?" he asked, amusement in his eyes.

"Isn't that a tongue twister!" she joked, deliberately avoiding the subject.

"I'm surprised your parents let you miss school just to sleep in."

"Well, I didn't exactly tell them that." She hoped he would leave it at that, but he raised a questioning eyebrow. "I told them I was feeling sick so they'd let me stay home."

"Ah, and what do you think they'll do if they see you walking around the garden?"

"Hopefully they won't," she retorted.

Before Cedric could reply Sofia spotted Amber walking swiftly towards them. They both stopped and waited for her to reach them.

"Sofia, I need to speak with you right away, it's very urgent," Amber said, trying to sound important, but Sofia could detect both amusement and excitement in her voice.

Sofia turned to Cedric. "I'll just be a minute."

"Okay."

Amber grabbed Sofia's arm and dragged her along the path until they came to the blocked entrance that led to the abandoned wishing well. "Are you ready?"

Sofia nodded. "As I'll ever be."

"Good." Amber pulled out a green umbrella and held it over her head, ready for the rain.

Pulling out the wand she had slipped in her skirt pocket earlier, Sofia tried to remember everything Cedric had taught her about creating thunderstorms. A smile slipped across her face as she remembered the lesson he had given her.

* * *

><p><em>Sofia held her wand up straight and then gave a flick of her wrist, moving it gracefully through the air. She was disappointed a moment later when a small, white cloud appeared, then vanished a second later.<em>

_"__You're moving the wand too fast and gripping it too tight," Cedric said as he walked over to her._

_He placed his hand over hers and loosened her fingers, which wasn't hard to do since she felt her hands turn into putty whenever he touched them. He then curled his fingers around hers and moved her hand, showing her exactly how to wave the wand._

_"__Just remember, slow and steady does the trick. Now, let's try this again. I'll help you wave your wand, but you say the words."_

_He guided her hand and when the wand tip was extended straight out Sofia said the magic words._

_"__Imber Ymber!"_

_Sofia felt her spirits soar when a small rain cloud appeared and started thundering as rain streamed down from it. They had already prepared for this, and a tin bucket under the cloud caught the rainwater._

_"__I did it!" Sofia exclaimed, and then turned around to face Cedric. "I actually did it!"_

_"__Yes, well it's not a terribly hard spell, though I don't see why princes and princesses need to learn such spells—" He was cut off when Sofia lurched forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders in a hug. He stiffened up at first, but a few moments later she felt him wrap one arm around her waist. "Good job, Princess Sofia."_

_She pulled away and suddenly realized how close their faces were. Her smile faded just a bit and she became more serious. The excitement from getting the spell right wore off, and a new feeling replaced it—one Sofia had been experiencing a lot lately, especially when she was around Cedric. She could feel a strange sensation in her stomach, like a hoard of butterflies had escaped from a cage inside her and were buzzing around in her stomach. Though perhaps that wasn't a very accurate description. Sofia imagined that butterflies flying around in her stomach would be an unpleasant thing, but the way she felt right now was nice. It filled her with a warm, pleasant feeling all over her body, and made her breath come quicker._

_She had the strange desire to lean forward and press her lips against his, just to see how they felt. Before she could, Cedric released his hold around her waist and leaned back slightly, just enough to break the trace-like state Sofia found herself in only moments before._

_She let out a nervous laugh and took a step back, suddenly feeling embarrassed and self-conscious. "Well, um…I should probably go and practice."_

_He nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Come back if you need any help."_

_She gave him a bright smile before turning to leave. "I will."_

* * *

><p><strong>Here a flashback to that moment I mentioned in the mistletoe chapter! :)<strong>

**As a side note, "Imber Ymber" is actually a Latin phrase, meaning rain storm. I always try and use Latin terms for the spells in this story, but this one is particular is my favorite, because how cool sounding is it? It rhymes, it's catchy, and it actually means rain storm! :)**

**Thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! I love all the support you guys have been giving, because this is my first time venturing into a comedy story that wasn't just a one-shot, and I actually wasn't too sure I could do a full-blown comedy, so thanks for the encouragement! And as always, enjoy! :)**


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